Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid
by DarkHeroOrion
Summary: A true force of nature arises from the lowly roots of Konoha. This child, a scion of noble birthright, is ironically shunned by his deep-seated burden. Follow along as our coming-of-age hero grows through the test of adversity and new challenges.
1. It Was Just the Beginning

_Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid_

_Well, this is one of my first attempts at writing fan fiction, so I will try to do my best. If you have the need to ask me on certain things, then I will try my best at answering it for you…However, I will not give you any spoilers of any kind._

_As usual, I do not own Naruto or any major or minor characters within the Naruto© universe, for they belong under the copyrighted protection laws of Masashi Kishimoto. Furthermore, any references or other facets that will gradually appear in this fic do not belong to me, either, as they fall under their respective property rights, and this is for entertainment purposes only, since I make no profit over imagination. This disclaimer will continue throughout the entire fic._

Well, here is my key guide, of which I assume that you all must be familiar with said key:

"This is speech."

_'This is thought.'_

_This represents a dream/flashback/mindscape sequence._

**"This is speech from a demon, animal summon or Inner Persona. Another possibility is the listing of a technique, which will be footnoted at the end."**

**_'This is thought from a demon, animal summon or Inner Persona_**_.**'**_

**"This is the speech of a demon-host merger."**

**_Chapter One_**: _It Was Just the Beginning…_

A dense mist clouded the entire area of the now pockmarked, unfinished bridge. Seven faded figures were hidden amidst the thick chakra-based miasma.

On the far edge of the bridge nearest to the local town, a pink-haired girl with green eyes, garbed in a red dress which had a red circle inside a larger, white concentric circle sewn into the back of it, with thigh-length slits, skin-tight black shorts and blue ninja footwear, was guarding a tubby (but burly) elder man with pepper-gray hair, tanned skin and corrective eyewear. He was also wearing a gray over-shirt with a lighter-gray belt, brown Capri pants and open-toed sandals.

The pink-haired kunoichi, who had a spiraling, leaf-like image engraved onto her blue-clothed hitai-ate, which was tied around the top of her head, tightened her grip onto the kunai that she was holding. When the fight had broken out, she was ordered to stand guard and protect Tazuna, which was the name of their client from the lowly country of the Wave, from harm's way, should the need ever arise. Luckily, her comrades and sensei were dealing with the threats on the bridge builder's life.

XXXXXXXXXX

Two fast blurs moved throughout the dense mist, each one trading blows of equal power toward the other and parrying them effectively. Both figures had skidded to a grinding halt and stared at the other with the utmost scrutiny. One of the figures donned the Hidden Leaf symbol just like his pink-haired charge. He also had spiky, upturned gray hair and had two eyes that were of different colors. His right eye was black, but his left eye was crimson with a black pupil and three tomoe on the iris. A debonair, vertical scar from the eye implant could be clearly seen around the intimidating "Copy Wheel Eye," the Sharingan. In his hand was a nicked kunai that had efficiently blocked the oncoming attacks from the enemy's behemoth zanbatou.

Said other man sported a black muscle shirt and had sword-holding straps around his pectorals and back. The enemy was of equal height compared to the other jounin, had short, spiky black hair and dark eyes. A mask of bandages concealed his lower face, and his hitai-ate was hanging crookedly from his scalp, with four squiggly lines and a long scar that ran through it. Thinking quickly on his toes, the wielder of the zanbatou closed his eyes, concentrated and placed a one-handed seal in front of his masked face. He whispered, **"Kirigakure no Jutsu,"** and vanished from the sight of the genius Copy-Ninja within the thickening fog.

He kept his eyes opened, and with Sharingan ablaze, Hatake Kakashi held his kunai at the ready, preparing to intercept any attack that the Kiri nuke-nin may throw at him.

XXXXXXXXXX

The battle on the farthest end of the bridge was getting heated. Sweat poured down the faces of two combatants, surrounded by a myriad of hovering, mirror-like objects.

One figure had stood out the most, seeing that his loud, tacky orange and blue jumpsuit could catch even a typical civilian's attention. His hair was bright blond and his skin was of a darker tan than his teammates and jounin-sensei, along with telltale whisker marks that lined his cheeks in triplicate. His crystal-blue eyes peered onward, at the trap of mirrors, in fixed determination.

His fellow teammate was of the pale, brooding breed…the talented genius of this year's batch of rookies and local heartthrob survivor. He sported a fierce look with his raven-black hair with shaggy bangs along both sides of his face. His eyes were a charcoal-black color. He was sporting a long, blue T-shirt with a high collar and his clan insignia on the back, which was a non-foldable fan of red at the top and white on the bottom.

Naruto, the blond, and Sasuke, the fair-skinned brunet, were nearing their natural limits as they looked at multiple effeminate figures that appeared as reflections on the ice-like mirrors.

"Damn it! We were so close," the blond-haired shinobi grated out in anguish, holding his balled-up fist up to his chest. How did they end up on the losing end, anyway?

_'Oh, yeah…It's my fault we're in this pickle…'_ he inwardly groaned. If only he planned ahead of time, but alas, Uzumaki Naruto never has a plan before a confrontation, but he somehow had the innate gift of adapting to situations and reacting accordingly—his strong point in combat-type situations. Thinking by the seat of his pants proved him to be a boon when the fighting broke out.

He stared up at the figure taunting him from behind the mirrors, and he noticed that the boy who was prettier than Sakura-chan had odd-looking curves; almost hourglass-shaped, just like the older women he had seen around Konohagakure no Sato—the Village Hidden among Tree Leaves. It caused him to slightly close his eyes and examine the boy's figure.

Now, the blue-eyed ninja started to have his doubts on the older boy's gender.

The brooding Uchiha glanced over to his teammate. "Naruto, can you still move?" he inquired, breaking his teammate out of his distant stare.

The Number One Hyperactive Ninja turned to Sasuke and vented his frustration, "Of course I can! I'm still okay!"

Sasuke mentally sighed as he gave his blue-eyed comrade a glancing once-over. _'He's exhausted, but I guess that's no surprise,'_ he observed without vocalizing it, mouth etched into a thin line. _'The Kage Bunshin no Jutsutakes a lot of chakra.'_ He turned to the dome of ice-mirrors. _'But, because of that, I found a way to defeat him.'_

Inside one of the frozen mirrors was a long, dark-haired, effeminate ninja in a forest-toned battle kimono, and donned a white mask with a small gash in the center, which was caused by the earlier scuffle with just the raven-haired pre-teen. Four squiggly lines were etched into the top of the mask to denote a faux allegiance to Kirigakure, as well as two squinting eye-slits for vision.

After having the cloth at the bottom of his kimono burned by the Uchiha's Katon ninjutsu, the figure looked on at the two struggling shinobi.

_'It's not possible,' _thought the androgynous shinobi known as Haku. _'It must have_ _just been a fluke.'_

The ice-infused mirrors gave off an eerie flash, and immediately, the hardened avenger flashed through a few hand seals.

"Naruto, run." The blond ninja looked over in confusion. "Get out of here and attack from the outside!"

A bit hesitant, Naruto retorted, "O-Okay!" The orange-clad ninja dashed for trying to get out of the prison of the androgynous figure's ice-mirrors.

Haku coolly responded, with a hint of confidence, "Will you be able to?" Another eerie flash later, Naruto was knocked back several feet, but that did not stop the blond wonder. Quickly recovering from the fall, he ran as fast as he could to escape.

"I'm not going to lose!" shouted the hyperactive Konoha-nin, running at top speed.

One of the images moved and phased out of the ice mirror to quickly intercept the blond headache.

Peering over, the raven-haired ninja caught sight of the fast-approaching faux-oinin toward his teammate. _'There!'_

**"Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"**

A large fireball spewed forth from the mouth of Konoha's beloved avenger, attempting to singe the cloth around the ankles again. Turning at the last moment, Haku barely bypassed the hot flame and threw a senbon right into Sasuke's left shoulder. Following up, Haku delivered a strong roundhouse kick to send the blond shinobi back to where his friend had fallen and melted into one of the mirrors.

Struggling to get back up, he heard the dark-eyed avenger say, "That was good. Let's do it again…"

"I won't let that happen again!" interrupted the effeminate accomplice to the Hidden Mist Demon. The figure tossed a senbon with deadly accuracy at the knee region of the Uchiha, and immediately, he launched a barrage of senbon needles at both wary combatants. They screamed in agony…

XXXXXXXXXX

Aforementioned Hidden Mist Demon, Momochi Zabuza, vanished completely from the sight of the Copy-Ninja.

_'Damn it,'_ Kakashi mentally cursed as he struggled to see in the thick miasma. _'It's been a long time since I had to fight in such a bad situation. I'm worried about Naruto and Sasuke, but…'_

He closed his eyes to analyze what to do. _'Be calm. Think. Where will he strike…?'_ His trail of thought ended on a grim conclusion as his eyes shot wide open and looked toward the direction of his pink-haired charge and their client. _'Shit!'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Peering through the dense chakra-fog in eerie serenity, Sakura was quietly maintaining her calm, steeling her resolve and faith in the rest of her team.

The zanbatou-wielder appeared without a sound, behind his wary target. He charged, and the two were on high alert at the last moment. The Demon of Kirigakure removed his sword from its carrier and made a downward, angular slash toward Tazuna. However, at a blinding-quick speed, Kakashi appeared to intercept the blow. The horse-chopping saber made contact unto flesh, and Sakura screamed out in terror.

XXXXXXXXXX

The emanating scream from one end of the bridge filtered to the other end, toward the battered and beaten human pincushions.

Sasuke gasped, his breath hitching up in his trachea. _'Was that Sakura?'_ He hurriedly pondered. _'Did something happen? What is Kakashi doing?'_

Naruto was lying prostrate with senbon needles stuck in his back. Hearing the feminine scream, he incoherently mumbled, "S-Sak-Sakura…chan…"

_'Damn_, _I need to do something…'_ The matte-black-haired avenger clenched his hands together in two, tough fists.

He was stirred from his thoughts as the blond demon-vessel slowly stood up, chuckling. "I'll do something about this…"

Sasuke's eyes widened in disbelief at the unknown jinchuuriki as soon as said blond glanced over at him with a look of crazed determination. How did the dobe manage to have the strength left to go on? _'He…'_

"Let's go," was all that Naruto had noted, interrupting the Uchiha's train of thought, before standing fully erect.

"How futile," Haku sadly intoned from one of the ice-mirrors, desperate for the fight to come to a draw…or at least, tire them out so there would not be any further bloodshed.

With a loud growl and a focused hand seal, blue chakra flared around the bewhiskered ninja. He then had charged straight for an opening. Blurring out of sight for a split second, Haku appeared before him. Naruto performed a back-flip and dashed to the other parts of the crystalline structures. Like a reflection, the effeminate oinin ran to match the speed of the blond jinchuuriki.

Sasuke looked on and noticed that something was not right. And then, he saw it.

"Naruto, behind you!"

Unfortunately, it was too late. The androgynous accomplice to the Demon of the Mist appeared in the mirror behind the blond pre-teen and landed multiple senbon needles into his flesh. With the force behind the senbon barrage, Naruto flew back a few feet. Struggling to get up, his teammate was yelling his name.

"It's impossible to get out of here," Haku remarked with a melancholy resolve. "I can assure you of that."

_'Why do they keep fighting?'_ the effeminate ninja added as an afterthought.

The dormant Sharingan wielder ran up to and kneeled by his comrade. "Can you stand up, Naruto?" Said downed companion tried his best to move before Sasuke continued. "Don't waste your chakra like that, anymore. That's what he wants us to do."

The blond-haired shinobi panted and retorted, "I know…" All of a sudden, the blue-eyed wonder collapsed from exhaustion and pain. _'I feel so…weak…'_

_'Damn it,'_ Sasuke mentally cursed at himself, wishing he was a bit stronger. _'This isn't looking good, at all. I…I need to do something!'_

Standing up, he murmured to himself, "My eyes are getting used to his movement…"

The faux-oinin flickered into one of the mirrors. "I will put an end to this now," the boy calmly stated, certainty lining his light tone. He unleashed a volley of needles at the Uchiha kid, but said aspiring ninja picked up a nearby senbon to parry the entire salvo. Haku's eyes widened in disbelief, even though the face was concealed by the mask. _'How in the world was he able to block all the needles that were targeted for his vital points?'_

Kneeling down and panting, Sasuke shouted at the dobe, "Stand up, idiot!" Naruto could barely move a muscle before his strength returned.

He shakily sat up. "I know!" he shouted in a clipped manner, flustered due to being outclassed. "Stop being so annoying!" He needed a bit more time to gather himself for another assault.

With his heart breaking from the mix of clashing ideals at this bridge, Haku launched a larger bombardment of needles, but Sasuke not only parried the barrage senbon, but he also protected the dobe at the same time.

"Naruto," the onyx-eyed Uchiha scion roared, "you better not faint! I can't cover for your ass any longer!" _'I'm not having your blood on my hands, you moron!'_

"I don't need your help…" The blond demon vessel's voice trailed off as he collapsed on the bridge.

Sasuke gasped and turned around to see the blond lying on the ground.

His musings were cut short by the effeminate voice. "Looks like that boy can't move, anymore." The faux-oinin giggled girlishly as Sasuke's rage peaked. He turned upward and threw a senbon, only to have it instantly blocked by another one from out of nowhere.

The effeminate shinobi flickered around the mirrors, taunting the Uchiha kid while launching several senbon to puncture an aorta. Then, Haku flung several more to where Naruto was laying. On instinct, Sasuke grabbed the passed-out dead last and jumped up, out of safety. He landed gracefully away from the recently-dumped, knocked-out blond by several feet.

_'This_ can't _be…'_ Haku thought, knowing well that those needles were right on target. _'Was he able to read my movements?'_

The dark-haired shinobi caught his breath and fiercely glared at Haku. His eyes were now crimson, with two tomoe in his right eye and one in his left. The Sharingan had been awakened.

_'Everything's so clear, now…'_ Breathing heavily, he got quite adjusted to his improved vision.

Haku thought to finish the fight quickly before he predicted his every movement. Getting an idea, he launched a few more needles toward the defenseless, unconscious blond, hoping to end his life for good. Once again acting on instinct, Sasuke rushed in to intercept the deadly senbon salvo, wishing that he would make it in time. Senbon connected with flesh before someone's world faded to black…

XXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, on the other side of the bridge, blood trickled down from Kakashi's grazed chest-wound to his feet. It was a good thing that the jounin vest had come in handy. He was focused on the pathetic excuse of a shinobi that slashed him, clutching his chest in pain with his right hand.

The eyes of the pink-headed kunoichi widened in horror and she screeched, "Kakashi-sensei!"

Zabuza held his zanbatou at a downward angle and rested the tip on the bridge with his left hand. "You were too slow to guard yourself, Kakashi," started the nuke-nin from Kiri, in a pompous manner. "Your wish to help those kids made you lose your cool and further fog up that Sharingan of yours."

He glared evilly at the Leaf jounin and continued. "Even if you have nice eyes, your ability to read an enemy's movement is numbing." He chuckled at his own sadistic humor and continued to boast. "Come on, entertain me some more, Kakashi. I want to pay you back…in a more fun way."

The former Kiri-nin then adopted a serious tone with cold eyes. "Haku will beat those kids soon, so there's no need to worry about them." Kakashi, Tazuna and Sakura looked at him with disdain and disgust when he picked up his blood-soaked horse-cleaving sword. "Cry and apologize to them about your lack of power in the afterlife." Noticing the crazed look in his demonic eyes, while laughing maniacally, before disappearing into the mist, the Copy-Ninja narrowed his own.

_'All going according to plan…'_ the ashen-haired assassin reasoned as he tried to slow down his racing heartbeats.

Sakura quickly looked around to see if she could detect the movements of the crazed lunatic with the big-ass sword. The madman's words left her feel uneasy.

She looked down to the prison of icy glass with wide eyes and mumbled, "Sasuke-kun is going to be beaten?" She shook her head and replaced that worry with steeled resolve. "No," she said with gusto, closing her eyes tightly. "That won't happen. Sasuke-kun won't…" (**_'Shannaro!'_** Inner Sakura yelled as her black arms flailed about, throwing blinding-quick blows into nothingness.) "…lose to a…" (**_'Shannaro!'_**) "…guy like that!" (**_'Shannaro!'_**) She gave a muttering afterthought. "And Naruto, too."

"That's right."

Her musings ceased when she heard her instructor speak up, looking dead ahead to where Zabuza disappeared. "I…I believe in their power. Naruto is the number one noisy ninja in surprising people. And Sasuke is from Konoha's most prestigious clan…"

Hidden in his technique, Zabuza caught wind of his pep monologue to the worthless, pink-haired girl. His eyes widened in shock. "So, he's…" He started but was interrupted by the Copy-Ninja, himself.

"Yes," the injured ninja doted with pride, "his name is…Uchiha Sasuke. He is the genius ninja that possesses the kekkei genkai of the Uchiha clan."

The whites of Zabuza's eyes grew large while his irises and pupils shrank. He asked, beyond uncertainty, "He's a survivor of _that_ clan of tragedy?"

_'No wonder he grew up so fast…'_ Zabuza mused in his thoughts, taking note of how the brat kicked Haku back toward him.

"But, that goes for Haku as well," the zanbatou-wielder flatly stated as the mist cleared around him, holding his sword behind his back. Before the mist thickened on his own will, he continued, "No one has been able to defeat Haku's master technique. No one…"

Preparing for attack, Kakashi took a defensive stance while hearing Zabuza mutter, while fading from the vision of the jounin. "Now, then, I guess that I'll put an end to this, too."

The Copy-Ninja took a three-point running stance and ordered Sakura to not move. After she complied with slight hesitation, the gray-haired ex-ANBU captain darted toward the hidden target.

XXXXXXXXXX

The blond jinchuuriki regained consciousness and trembled from the pain of the senbon needles lodged into various sections of his body. His foggy vision cleared, and he noticed Haku lying prostrate on the ground, seemingly unconscious. He had then turned to the looming figure right in front of him. He smiled with joy. "Sasuke…"

"Really, Naruto…you're a burden…all the…time," the brunet struggled to say, without even looking at the dobe.

In joyous glee, Naruto yelled, "You did it, Sasuke…!" Then, his smile fell quickly as it appeared. He noticed that even more senbon were lodged into the brooding bastard's body, and some were lodged close to his vital points.

The orange-clad ninja stared in horror at the sight of a small pool of blood. _'Why did he risk his life for me…? I thought no one cared…'_

The cold-hearted avenger turned to the proclaimed moron. "Look at yourself…you idiot…"

Struggling to speak, Naruto yelled, "W-Why?" His eyes watered. "You protected me…"

Sasuke's eyes held a look of defeat. "Who…knows…?" His eyes glazed over. "I…hated you…"

"Why?" interrupted the blond, frustration spilling out of his sunny disposition. "Why? Why did you protect me…?" The now-dark-eyed Uchiha glanced back with a smirk on his face. "I didn't ask you to!"

"Who knows…?" He repeated, struggling to speak. "My body moved on its own accord, dobe…" The distant boy slumped back and closed his eyes. He would have landed in a disgraceful heap were it not for his fellow companion-in-arms to catch him while he fell.

"SASUKE…!" yelled the loud ninja.

The lone wolf of Konoha looked up to nowhere in particular. "That man…I didn't want to die until I killed my brother…" With labored breath and effort, he shakily moved up his hand toward the blond. "You…don't die…" Said hand fell limply as the raven-haired heartthrob closed his eyes once more. The well of numbing tears poured from the crystal-blue eyes of the demon vessel as he hugged the inert body.

With a dejected expression, despite the face covering, the faux-oinin stood up. "He…" recollecting how Sasuke took the hit of the salvo before flinging him to one of the glassy ice-mirrors, "was able to jump into a trap to protect someone important. He's a ninja worthy of respect."

The effeminate figure turned to a profile. "Is this…the first time you've seen a friend die?" Haku phased into of the mirrors and continued. "That is the path of a shinobi…"

Naruto's body began to tremble as his emotions locked up. Everything seemed to slow down around him and the body of his friend. Why did he throw himself into harm's way without a plan? The mounting frustration and the pain flung his mind into mental duress. He felt the overwhelming force of nature sealed into his belly at birth.

"Shut up…" The blond jinchuuriki snarled, looking away from Haku. "I hated you, too…" Heavy mist and energy emanated from the blond enigma while Haku looked on in blank wonder. "You will pay…" Suddenly, as if a dam of water had burst, a demonic red chakra flooded and spiraled around Naruto and his fallen friend, cutting deep ruts into the bridge. A brief image of a fox with menacing-looking eyes appeared from the spiraling column of chakra, opened its maw in a silent roar, and vanished upward toward the sky. The blond looked up to the reflective surfaces opposite of Haku. The demon container's eyes turned a bloody red hue, the whisker-marks on his face and his canine teeth grew more prominent while his hair grew more unruly.

**"I'll kill you!"** the jinchuuriki roared, laced with demonic bloodlust.

Haku started suffocating from the hurtling waves of focused sakki and was literally sweating bullets underneath the mask.

_'What is this terrible chakra? That's impossible! It's taking form!'_ Haku was simply at a loss for words, for he had awakened a slumbering beast…and _he_ wanted to come out and play…

Naruto's muscles bulged as the senbon needles shot out from his body, while the regenerative healing process kicked in from the Kyuubi. His nails had become claw-like as the serenity of Naruto's demeanor gave way into the evil chakra.

_'And his wounds are healing…! Who the hell _is_ this boy?'_ Haku's thought was halted when those red, demonic eyes glared directly through the mask and right into his soul.

Looking back to this day, Haku would remember one thing…

_Never, under any circumstances, try to harm Naruto's important people._

"**I'll rip you apart!**" yelled Naruto in an inhuman intonation, squatting on all four limbs and ready to pounce.

XXXXXXXXXX

The experienced jounin paused and looked in the direction of the wave of chakra potential and ki.

_'Is it Zabuza?' _Kakashi quickly reflected, but he tossed aside that idea and his eyes widened when he heard an all-too-familiar bellow. _'No, that disgusting chakra belongs to…Naruto…!'_

The thoughts of the ex-ANBU captain raced at one kilometer per minute. It took a lot for the Copy-Ninja to be shaken up, but the familiar…_demonic_ essence caused him to panic. _'This is bad…Why did the seal break at a time like this…? I have to hurry…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

A-class criminal, Momochi Zabuza, felt the presence of the demonic life-force and thought similarly to the Copy-Ninja.

_'What is this chakra? It feels…_unpleasant_…'_ The shady-skinned jounin mulled it over in his head. _ 'Is it Kakashi? No, it's too big to belong to him.'_ He racked his brain, wondering who had unleashed such a powerful presence—the possible game-changer that would turn the tide of battle.

XXXXXXXXXX

The transformed Naruto charged dead-on, on all fours, at the effeminate ninja in pure rage and hatred. With quick reflexes, Haku launched some needles into his flesh, only to have it blown out of his body with a burst of a red wave of chakra.

With a single, essence-filled roar, the mirrors of ice shattered, and Haku tried to flee by phasing out of a flipping ice-crystal. But, as fate would have it, Naruto grabbed the arm of the false oinin with incredible speed and leveled into his face a bone-shattering fist powered with demonic strength. Haku flipped through the air and landed in an undignified heap, unconscious. The masked cracked in half, revealing the supposed "boy that looked prettier than Sakura-chan."

The blond demon vessel cooled quickly and crouched down. The foreign chakra from within had taken a considerable toll on his body as it began to recede within his stomach. He unsteadily walked over to Haku, picked him up and laid him close to Sasuke. Using what was left of his strength, he picked up both figures—one cold to the touch and the other warm—and walked over to where the bridge builder and Sakura-chan had been.

XXXXXXXXXX

Kakashi closed his eyes and thought out a plan. Keeping a calm composure, he focused on what he should do. He felt the demonic presence retreat and mentally sighed in relief.

_'Okay…Sensei's seal has only weakened, and not broken completely…However,'_ Kakashi concluded mentally, a sigh of relief escaping his lips, _'I need to end this quickly so I can look over Naruto's seal…'_

The masked Copy-Ninja whipped out a scroll, wiped some blood from his vest and lined the scroll with it. Twirling it about the place, he coolly remarked, "Sorry, Zabuza, but the line for you ends here, so how about we end this little charade and go all out?"

The Demon of the Mist laughed dryly and remarked, "Try all you want, Kakashi, but there is no way that you can find me. This is _my_ jutsu and it has yet to be defeated."

"Let's put that to the test, then, shall we?" Whipping through a few hand signs, Kakashi slammed down the scroll onto the bridge with his hands on top of it.

**"Ninpou Kuchiyose: Doton: Tsuiga no Jutsu!"** The scroll remained intact when symbolic images scattered and tore through the rumbling ground in a claw-like fashion.

"Whatever you do is useless…" Zabuza flatly declared, as if stating the obvious. "You can't figure out where I am…but…I know exactly where you are, Kakashi. You are completely trapped in my jutsu…" Zabuza paused, since he felt the bridge shake underneath him. Unfortunately, his musings were cut short when a pack of _nin-ken_ burst from the ground. One of the canines tried to take a bit out of his left ankle, but the zanbatou-wielder lifted up said ankle, only to have another ninja-hound bite down on his other ankle. While kept in place, the entire pack of the tracking hounds bit down onto the nuke-nin with razor-sharp fangs. With his focus lost, the mist started to clear.

XXXXXXXXXX

The sound of growling had been heard by the bridge builder and the aspiring kunoichi.

"What the hell is happening?" a frustrated Tazuna asked in bewilderment.

Sakura had similar sentiments. "What? What's going on?" Gripping harder onto the kunai, she was lost in thought. _'I hope that everyone's all right…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

"Ah…" Kakashi realized in clarity, standing up and gazing at Zabuza with his implanted Sharingan eye. "If your ears and eyes don't work, just use your nose. That's what happens when you have your eyes shut in the mist."

He paused and looked directly into Zabuza's eyes. "This summoning is made specifically for tracking down an opponent. The reason why I let my blood spill twice was just for this purpose. Your weapons are soaked with the scent of my blood. Now," he pointed at his furry companions, "these are my cute little ninja-hounds. Their sense of smell exceeds that of all other dogs. What that boils down to is that _you_ were the one trapped in _my_ jutsu." Zabuza scowled. How dare he be outwitted like this!

Kakashi's gaze at the nuke-nin grew cold. "The mist has cleared, and your future is clear, too, for it is…death!" His last word oozed with venomous disdain.

"I don't care about your bluffs!" Zabuza spat, struggling to break free. "I don't give a damn!"

"Don't act so tough!" Kakashi retorted as he calmly stood in front of his target. "There's nothing you can do in this situation. Your death is certain." His eyes dangerously narrowed, the look on his face promising lots of pain. "Zabuza, you fooled around too much, and your ambition was too great. Your attempted assassination of the Mizukage and your coup d'état both failed. You abandoned the Land of Water and became a nuke-nin with your few remaining subordinates. Your name soon reached even Konoha no Sato.

"In order to gain money from retaliation, and to avoid prosecution from the pursuing ninja…you sided with a vermin like Gatou.

"Zabuza," Kakashi started to ask, "did you really think I have survived with just the Sharingan alone? This time, I'll show you not a copy, but my own jutsu." Flashing through a few hand seals, blue-lightning chakra crackled and flared around the Copy-Ninja's hand and body at full force.

**"Raikiri!"**

_'What the hell?'_ Zabuza mentally cursed._ 'The chakra is so concentrated that it's completely visible…I can see it in his hand…'_

Even though Zabuza's face was wrapped in a bandaged mask, his jaw noticeably dropped and his skin tone slightly paled. He could not move and an electric-filled fist was about to be driven through his chest in a matter of moments. However, he waited for his loyal weapon to show up, seeing that if his wielder was in danger, he would always return.

_'Although something tells me otherwise…'_ Zabuza offhandedly cogitated to himself, trying to recall whether or not Haku was what he said he was.

"You're too dangerous," Kakashi callously admitted while the blue chakra-lightning danced wildly about in the palm of his hand. "The person that you are trying to kill…Tazuna-san…is this country's courage. The bridge he is trying to create is the hope of this country.

"Your ambition sacrifices too many people, and that's not what a shinobi is supposed to do."

Zabuza dully retorted, "Who gives a damn?" Kakashi narrowed his eyes at the impassive Demon of the Mist. "I have fought for my ideals, and that won't change in the future, either."

The rage within Kakashi emanated as the concentrated chakra erupted into an indeterminate, phantom sphere of lightning. "I'll say this again," the Copy-Ninja threatened while the nuke-nin raised his hairless brows. "Give up."

Silence filled the area, save for the crackling lightning surrounding the palm of the ex-ANBU. Kakashi first broke the silence. "Your future is death." The Copy Ninja sprang into action and ran to the detained Zabuza.

XXXXXXXXXX

Surprised that the fog was dissipating, the bridge builder looked around and stated the obvious. "The really thick mist is starting to settle."

A faint crackling sound was heard from both civilian and kunoichi. Sakura looked dead ahead and noticed two figures, staring at one another; however, Tazuna did not.

_'Which one is Kakashi-sensei?'_ Sakura thought to herself. Acting as commentary for the client, she gasped and yelled, "One of them moved!" A blurred shadow rushed at a high speed to meet the immobile foe.

All of a sudden, she felt the presence of someone behind her. Turning around, she saw an image of a short figure with two indescribable humps on its shoulders. From the dissipating fog, she could see spiky blond hair and the not-so-popular orange and blue jumpsuit.

"Naruto," she called over to her dazed companion. The blond jinchuuriki lifted up his head to reveal his saddened blue eyes—tired and beyond exhaustion—before he fell to the ground with the unconscious Haku and the corpse of her crush with a dull slam.

Before Naruto slipped into the realm of darkness, he heard footsteps rapidly approaching and a feminine voice screaming out his name, as well as the name of his other teammate.

* * *

**A/N: Good day (or evening, depending on your time zone), ladies and gentlemen.**

**This is the author coming to you from the future (as of the year 2011), and I'm just letting future readers know that these earlier chapters will get a slight overhaul, to bring the quality up to the standard which I write, now. There won't be much, but it will be enough to bump the plotline and story to the current standard. I thank you all for your patience while I undergo this process. I hope that you stick with this fic, despite its…antiquated conventions/classical commonalities that were used to bring this fic to where it is, today.**

**Romaji/Jutsu Guide**

**Sharingan (Copy Wheel Eye)**: kekkei genkai of the once-famous Uchiha clan and one of the three great ocular eye techniques, or doujutsu; unlocked after a stressful event or emotional condition, the evolutionary progression of this bloodline limit is indicated by the number of comma-like marks, or tomoe, around the red irises; the user is granted an advanced perception of clarity, allowing him to detect chakra by color, detect if someone is under a genjutsu, or, at the third tier ability, copy and memorize jutsu the active wielder witnesses, apart from other kekkei genkai-related techniques (Narutopedia)

**Kirigakure no Jutsu (Hidden Mist Technique)**: D-rank supplementary ninjutsu; this displacement technique is a specialty of the Ninja from Kirigakure, where one causes a mist to spring forth by lifting up some water, then goes in and out of sight at will from within the pearly-white realm. The mist's thickness is controlled by the amount of chakra kneaded into it (Narutopedia).

**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Technique)**: B-rank ninjutsu; other than standard clones, they are, in fact, bodies, and not illusions; any experience or knowledge the clones gain during their existence is transferred to the user once they are dispersed but causes mental fatigue when fully dispelled at one time (as for its multiple variation, the practitioner of this technique creates shadow clones en masse and is an A-rank forbidden technique) (Narutopedia)

**Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)**: C-rank offensive short-range ninjutsu; this jutsu allows the user to knead chakra inside the body to create an energy source to convert into fire, which the user then expels from his or her mouth in a continuous stream akin to a flamethrower or a massive orb of roaring flame (Narutopedia)

**Shannaro**: no literal translation into English, although fan-subs usually replace it with "Hell yeah," "hell no," or "damn it"

**Sakki**: literally, "murderous intent," but also known as "killing intent" or "the intent to kill"

**Ninpou Kuchiyose: Doton: Tsuiga no Jutsu (Ninja Art Summoning: Earth Release: Tracking Fang Technique)**: B-rank offensive multiple-range summoning ninjutsu; a high-grade, tracking-offensive ninjutsu, which calls forth an octet of ninja hounds—or ninken—to pursue and detain an enemy through an assault from underground; oftentimes, the ninja hounds need a sample of the user's blood to track down the other enemy, if his or her blood finds itself on the enemy's weaponry or clothes (Narutopedia)

**Raikiri** **(Lightning Cutter)**: S-rank, offensive short-range ninjutsu; with the ability of raw elemental chakra manipulation, the user concentrates a dense, erratic, blue mass of electricity in the palm of his/her hand; unlike its parent technique, **Chidori (One Thousand Birds)**, the Lightning Cutter requires more precise chakra control; just like the Chidori, both jutsu contain the nasty drawbacks of tunnel vision due to the high speed at which the practitioner of this certain-kill technique travels (Narutopedia)

**Nuke-nin**: missing ninja

**Oinin**: hunter ninja


	2. Kyuubi: The Slumbering Beast Awakens

As for the Kyuubi in this chapter…well, I decided to add my own personal touch to him. I apologize if you want Kyuubi to be malicious and evil. I made him out to be a trickster, since that is how a fox is portrayed to be.

Disclaimer: Always refer to Chapter One, because I will be tired and lazy to put up a disclaimer every time. I know that no one here on this site owns any rights to any of the fics that they write. In the words of Nara Shikamaru, it would be "too troublesome" to type it. The same goes with the key/legend of this fic, even though I know most of you know how it works.

Well, enough about my rant. Here's the next installment of _Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid_.

**_Chapter Two:_** _Kyuubi: The Slumbering Beast Awakens_

_Drip…Drip…Drip…_

_The pitter-patter of the dripping fluid caused Naruto to stir. Fluttering his eyelids, he slowly opened them. Immediately, his eyes opened wide and he became fully aware of his surroundings. He lurched up from the watery solution, taking note that his clothes were still bone-dry. Glancing around, the blond genin stared at a gloomy and barely lit dungeon, similar to a catacomb with iron-like piping that lined the walls. He also noticed that there were two pipes that were emanating some kind of energy source; on one side of the ceiling was filled with a red essence, while the other was a weak, blue hue._

_"I guess I'm not in Wave Country anymore…" He muttered to himself as he began to get back on his two feet._

_Shakily standing, the jinchuuriki gazed at the multiple maze-like pathways, all inked in darkness. He was perplexed. What the hell was going on?_

_"Where am I, exactly?"_

_As if to answer his question, he heard a deep, rumbling sound from one of the shadowy corridors. The low rumble piqued his interest, so he followed along the inky pathways._

_After what appeared to be a few minutes later, he thought that he had heard a presence…that was breathing. Taking a quick glance to the ceiling, the red pipe was considerably brighter than the blue pipe and walked right along, with insatiable curiosity._

_After the myriad of corners and turns, the demon vessel came upon a tunnel with a bright light at the end. Walking through said tunnel made the blue-eyed boy squint his eyes from the light, while crossing his arms around his face._

_After readjusting to the newfound light, he felt a very powerful presence in the room in which he was standing. The demon container fully opened his eyes and took note of the fifty-foot double-doors made of iron, held together by a flimsy piece of paper with the kanji for "seal" written on it._

_"What the hell is this place?"_

**_"This is where I reside…and who dares disturb my slumber…?"_**_ a deep, booming voice echoed throughout the room. The whisker-marks flinched and stared wide-eyed at the spirit behind the bars._

_It was a crouching figure of vulpine stature, with a muzzle to prove so otherwise. The apparition had carmine fur, with slit eyes matching the color of its coat. The form would have easily stood as tall as Hokage Rock, had it not been for its uncomfortable, confined corners. Each of its feral claws was just as large an adult-sized man. From what Naruto could interpret, the essence was highly perturbed from being stirred from its peace. Then, a swish of its nine tails caught the wide-eyed blond boy by surprise._

_The presence in front of him sneered and chuckled. **"So…you must be the one. Come closer, boy."**_

_As if complying with an order of a sensei, the blond stepped near the cage, where the crimson phantasm lashed out of the bars with its claws, causing the demon container to jump back like a scared little rat. The spirit in the cage chortled._

**_"Hmm…You appear rather weak to be my container, O Precious Warden."_**_ The sarcasm practically oozed from the demon to the point that even the kid understood it._

_"Your container? Just who the hell are you, anyway?" Naruto roared back with fervor, pointing his finger at the beast._

_The blue-eyed shinobi felt an unprecedented, suffocating amount of pressure coming from the imprisoned spirit as its eyes narrowed. The murderous intent caused Naruto to break into a cold sweat._

_"**What did you say to me, gaki?**" the vulpine phantom roared back with more venomous intensity than the whisker-marks. "**No one dares to raise his voice to the mightiest of bijuu, himself!**"_

'Mightiest of bijuu…?'_ Naruto thought and wondered what exactly was that…thing inside the tall iron bars that made even the knucklehead who knows no bounds flinch and feel helpless._

'Okay,'_ Naruto thought. _'This bastard creature looks a lot like…the…the…'

_His thought stammered and his eyes widened as he realized what was exactly in front of him. From what Mizuki had said when he had stolen the Scroll of Sealing, to the surge of energy that came from him a while ago caught up with him._

_"K-K-Kyuubi…?"_

_The nine-tailed bijuu was amused that even the little brat knew of his name. **"In the spiritual flesh, gaki, for I am the Kyuubi no Youko, the youma kitsune…and a monument to all your sins…**" He leered at his jailor with mild disdain._

_"So, that was your power that emerged from me?" he asked in mild confusion._

**_"Yes, as a matter of fact, it was,"_**_ the spirit fox answered toward his future tasty morsel. "**And since you tapped into my power, the seal gave way while I was clever enough to weaken it. That explains where you are as of now, kid. This is your subconscious, and I have gained a stronghold in it, because you lost control of the mental barriers that prevented you from…being influenced by me. However, since I have some partial control in the realm of your mind, you'll be hearing me from now on. And soon enough, I will be free from a weakling like you…**" The demon gave an evil, fang-toothed grin._

_"Like hell I will let you take over my body!" Naruto was about to storm off when he heard a huff from the nine-tailed being._

**_"Well, fine, runt. Have it your way, and wallow in the mire of mediocrity,"_**_ the Kyuubi remarked in a condescending fashion.** "It looks like that you won't need some of my power to get stronger. And since you are an ungrateful little flesh-bag, I'll take away the healing abilities. How does that sound?"**_

_Naruto turned on his heel and looked toward the demon with eyes filled with unreserved caution. The fox was the embodiment of dealing with the devil. "Why do you want to help me? Why should I even trust you, you flea-bag? You're evil…"_

**_"Relax, kid,"_**_ the Kyuubi interrupted. **"I was only bluffing about revoking the healing abilities. And if I were to take your body by force, I'll die in the process…and you will, too."** The matter-of-fact statement caused a small pit of shock within Naruto.** "Anyway, it comes with the power that you have been granted, and being sealed inside you was my punishment for betraying my guardian nation…"**_

_Human hands assumed a T-shaped pattern, signaling a time out. "Wait a minute! Are you telling me that you were a guardian? I don't believe that crock of bull one bit!" yelled a furious Naruto. He should not have done that…_

**_"SILENCE!"_**_ The phantom fox unleashed another choking tsunami of chakra potential at the stubborn blond. The demon vessel was on his knees, struggling to breathe, before the wave receded a minute later. **"Now, as I was saying, I used to be a powerful summon and protector of the Land of Fire against my will. I managed to break free once…when the man with red clouds ripped me from my second container."**_

_"Huh?" The blond knucklehead was bewildered by such a tall tale. "I really don't buy that, you know."_

**_"Believe what you want to, human,"_**_ the demon fox growled out, voice resounding like thunder in the chamber, **"but, in the end, I want to rip that bastard limb from limb…and you're going to help me, whether you like it or not…"**_

_"…Who are you after, Fox?"_

**_"Wouldn't _you_ like to know?"_**_ he tantalizingly asked—almost as if he dangled ramen in front of his vessel._

_The demon really tried his patience. "You do know I have a choice to refuse your power, don't you? You were the one who made my life a living hell!" Blue eyes narrowed to slits, cold fury beginning to rise forth as he pointed at the crimson behemoth. "The cold stares! They ignored me…refused to acknowledge me! And it's all…" he pointed for emphasis, "your…fault…"_

_The bijuu heaved a sigh, blowing his hot, rank breath around the wrought-iron bars. **"I yearn for freedom, and being free from you would be worth it, since you give me a headache…"**_

_Naruto, much like his unwanted tenant, growled, showing off his teeth. "Why are you acting like you're so tired? That's really getting annoying!"_

**_"As with your incessant yelling!"_**_ the ninth tailed-beast snapped back in rebuttal._

_"…You said that you were imprisoned beyond your will." Naruto decided to hear out his prisoner's case. He folded his arms over his chest in subtle defiance._

**_"…"_**_ The demon remained silent._

_"So, how did it all start, Fox?" Naruto thought to himself that it was better to show respect to the nigh-omnipotent force than be drowned in killing intent again. Twice was enough for the blue-eyed shinobi to learn his lesson. That and he felt small, controlled, hurtling waves of essence when the beast was recollecting._

_The nine-tailed beast looked at his container with an odd eye, due to the suddenly respectful tone. **"You might want to sit down, Naruto, because this tale will be very long to tell…"** The bewhiskered one obeyed without hesitation as he listened to the tale of the carmine fox-spirit._

**_"Since time immemorial, I have become a mere pet on a leash to you vile humans."_**

_Naruto easily felt the disdain rolling off the vulpine monster. "What do you mean? You mean, a long time ago, you got imprisoned by a human, and it's been hell for you ever since?" he asked in a concise manner, not really having any tact._

_An extremely large tick mark found its way onto the red-orange scalp of the Kyuubi. **"You…could say that…"** he growled out while showing off his gargantuan fangs that easily matched the size of a fully grown man's lower torso. **"Since that night, my life has served nothing but to be used as a mere weapon to enact bedlam and carnage in order to bring about your idealistic dreams of order and security."**_

_"Huh…" Now, the blond shinobi-in-training had a nagging curiosity clawing his mind. "I didn't take you for the bitter demon-type, Kyuubi…"_

**_"Being thrust from one body into another tends to give you…perspective…"_**_ The tone the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox emitted sounded like one fitting an old man; one who has seen, done and witnessed all sorts of nightmarish realities._

_"Why don't you tell me, instead of acting like you have pride?" the boy queried with an alien tone._

_It took the Kyuubi no Youko time to gather his side of the story. **"When I was the final demon summoned into your realm, I was quickly subdued into this pentagram-like symbol in a forest clearing…"**_

_"Pentagram? Like, a star-shaped symbol with a five-pointed thingy in it?"_

**_"You mean a pentagon?"_**_ he clarified for the bumbling idiot of a ninja. _

_"Yeah, what you said!"_

**'This boy is hopeless…'** _the carmine trickster dully considered. **"Anyway…it was apparently the medium in which some pitiful human used to draw me out. I bore witness to this pathetic human that had some dumb, orange spiral-mask that showed off an eye with odd-looking tomoe. Never had I felt a sinister chakra unlike my own that had come from that crimson-eyed Uchiha and his repugnant Sharingan…"**_

_"Uchiha?" Naruto was now dumbstruck. "Hold it right there. Are you telling me that an Uchiha ripped you out from the last container?"_

**_"Correct, brat. Anyway, I have to hand it to you; you're actually taking this quite well for a twelve-year-old runt."_**_ Naruto scowled at the bijuu._

_"I'm thirteen…" he grumbled. "And the Uchiha…Is he the one you want to go after?"_

_Kyuubi sighed and deadpanned. **"He was the shodai of that accursed Uchiha clan, Uchiha Madara."** The eyes of the fox demon narrowed, slightly ignoring the brat's question, though he was not sure. The masked man had that Uchiha's signature, though. **"With his Sharingan, he was able to put me into a spell that made me his pet on a leash. It was then that my rage peaked and my mind was manipulated into attacking Konoha.**_

**_"Then, while I attacked, Gamabunta-san appeared on the scene, along with the spiky, blond-headed ninja known to you people as the Yondaime Hokage and a bundle of bouncing joy in his arms…you."_**_ Kyuubi worded it so as to not state it outright that he was his son. To his point-of-view, it was only logical speculation, although it made perfect sense. Thinking that none of the villagers would offer their newborn sons or daughters (or even themselves) to be the demon container, he only had one viable option: to unwillingly bestow the responsibility onto his own progeny. _**'I'll tell him when he's a bit older…that is,'**_ Kyuubi mused. _**'_If _he doesn't figure it out by the time I might tell him…or anyone else, for that matter…Besides, how can't you tell that he looks a lot like the man that sealed me inside of him…?'**

_"So…about the previous demon vessel…" Naruto prompted._

**_"I don't know what happened to her, to be honest."_**_ The Kyuubi placed a paw under his chin, which would have been comical, despite the grave thought. **"My memory's a bit fuzzy, anyway."**_

_Naruto merely blinked, not really sure if he should trust this demon. "Your last vessel was a girl?"_

**_"A woman, child,"_**_ the fox amended in a snarl, **"and a damn feisty one, too…"** The boy before him reminded him of that infernal wench._

_"And this Uchiha Madara character…Where is he, now?"_

**_"To hell if I know, but you will find him in due time."_**_ The fox displayed his sharp fangs, once more. **"He dons the black cloak of red clouds…"** His blood-red eyes grew to slits. **"Tread carefully, lest you regret awakening slumbering giants…"**_

_"How about a deal, fox? Something that will help the both of us with our…problems…?" the blond suggested, his facial features growing impassive and not revealing what he thought. "It looks like you could use a friend." He heard the beast snort. "Don't be like that, you big fur-ball. I don't want you to serve me. I want this to work both ways between us. You're in my body, and normally, what I say, goes."_

**_"And your point? You're boring me, boy,"_**_ he deadpanned._

_"Well, I can't say that I want to be your friend, so, how about…we become companions and help each other out?"_

_Kyuubi's eyes slightly widened at this brat's proposition. Even though he may be a dimwitted knucklehead, but he was forced to grow up, and that did a lot to him._

_He chuckled lightly at the strange enigma known as his container. **"You sure make an interesting bargain, Naruto. I'll tell you what…I'll help you out…I mean, help us out. Allow me to tweak the seal a bit to grant you some of my power to use at your disposal. While I tapped into your consciousness, I noticed that you had a troublesome time with chakra control and your senses are sub-par compared to my levels. That and you're on the short side compared to your teammates."** The blond demon vessel scoffed, feeling a bit sensitive regarding the topic of his height._

_"Hey, it's not the size of the dog in the fight, you know!" he cried in defense of his short stature._

**_"Your petty insecurities amuse me so, brat." _**_Now, it was his turn to hear his unwanted jailor snort in derision.** "Nevertheless, allow me this one time to rectify the events in our lives hereafter. You have my solemn vow that I will protect you as well as those you hold dear to you." ** Naruto looked at Kyuubi with uncertainty before reluctantly nodding._

_"If you try anything funny, then I will show no mercy…" Naruto emptily threatened. "It's not a promise; it's a guarantee!"_

_It was time to reel in the boy to put confidence in him. **"Okay, Naruto, now, here is what's going to happen. With my manipulation of the seal, you will be bestowed with better chakra control, seeing that you have a lot of chakra to maintain, and enhanced auditory, visual and olfactory senses."** He glanced at the bewildered blond, as if the demon was speaking in demon tongue. **"That means you will get better hearing, sight and smell."** This earned a flashy grin from the whisker-marks.** "Adding to that, you will acquire a strength boost as well as more nourishment to stimulate your growth."** He sighed heavily. **"Frankly, ramen is not helping you grow to your true, full potential. Eat more variety, for the sake of the gods!"** _

_"Hey, don't knock ramen, Fuzz-Butt!" the blue-eyed genin rebelliously roared. "It's the perfect food choice!"_

**'I might as well throw intelligence into the mix…and all this power for only a tail-worth of my essence…He's getting a lucky break,'**_ Kyuubi mused to himself. _**'Besides, I don't want my demon vessel to act like an idiot and get killed…or close to it, at any rate…'**

**_"I need for you to climb up to the seal and hold it while I transfer some of my chakra to mix with your essence."_**

_"Hey, are you even listening to me?"_

**_"No…"_**_ The little runt had the nerve to growl at him again. **"You're a nuisance…a mere gnat that needs to be squashed…"**_

_"Well, you're a big meanie!"_

_A single, elongated ear twitched in annoyance. **"Do you desire the need to be stronger, or not, runt? This isn't an open offer. I need a decision, and I want it…now…"**_

_The bewhiskered boy sighed out his frustrations. "Is this going to be painful?" he hesitantly asked as he walked up the cage, sticking to the iron bar near the seal-tag._

**_"…Maybe…"_**_ he cryptically murmured._

_"That gives me nothing…"_

**_"Try it out, my dear container…"_**_ the red vulpine taunted._

_Holding onto the seal, Kyuubi held up his forepaw and touched the other side of the paper seal holding the prison intact. The jinchuuriki felt the raw essence rush through him as he howled and gurgled in anguish. Bloody tears formed in his eyes as he clenched his teeth to endure the pain. After what felt like an eternity, Naruto fell into the watery muck with a sickening thud._

_"You…should have…told me…that it…was going…to be…PAINFUL!" Naruto struggled to say between panting breaths._

**_"Oops…Did I forget to mention that little tidbit, kiddo?"_**_ To Naruto, it looked as if Kyuubi was giving him his own trademark foxy grin. The blond, who was not really amused, shakily stood up, feeling as if his body had gone through a trash compactor and a blender, along with being burned by one thousand Katon ninjutsu._

**_"Before you return, there is another caveat,"_**_ Kyuubi advised with a faraway tone in his voice. Naruto actually understood the word without looking puzzled. **"When you wake up, you're going to be in a world of hurt from the adjustments, as well as certain…side effects from the seal manipulation. I advise that you avoid training at all costs for the next couple of days, while getting accustomed to your new body."** After the carmine trickster finished, a small wave of bubbling-red chakra encased Naruto and heaved him out of the mindscape to the realm of the living._

_"Whoa, whoa!" The blond ninja got pushed around the labyrinthine structure, getting jolted this way and that, as he saw the oncoming bright light at the end of his journey. _'What the hell is he doing to me?'

**_"Enjoy your new power…Naruto…"_**_ he heard the Kyuubi's voice echo before hearing a chilling fit of laughter. After reaching the light, his world went dark, once more._

**'To consider me an ally rather than treat me like a prisoner…' **_The Nine-Tailed Demon Fox hummed, rattling the iron bars containing him._**'I don't know whether to laud him for his foolhardiness, or curse him for potentially damning his soul to the throes of oblivion…'**

_The boy played a dangerous game by giving the demon a bit of his trust._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N: Greetings, once again, from the author in the future (coming to you, ladies and gentlemen, from the year 2011). This chapter posed the most contention, and, as noted by my go-to pre-reader and beta, I have had to make adjustments in this chapter to make things fall better in place, instead of having an outdated chapter with newer information pouring in from the recent canon chapters.**

**I have also taken some criticism into consideration with overhauling a good chunk of this chapter, to make it flow a bit better. The Kyuubi, in this story, for all intents and purposes, is neutral, to an extent, but still has that trickster mentality that rears its ugly head from time to time. He's going to be a more helpful entity as the time progresses in this story.**

**Romaji/Jutsu Guide**

**Gaki**: brat

**Kyuubi no Youko**: Nine-Tailed Demon Fox: rumored to be the most powerful tailed-beast in existence on the mortal plane

**Youma kitsune**: spirit fox

**Shodai**: founder or first generation

**Katon**: Fire Release


	3. Hidden Abilities: Newfound Strength

**_Chapter Three: _**_Hidden Abilities: Newfound Strength_

_'Ugh…the Kyuubi was right…'_

Naruto squirmed in what felt like was a bed, writhing in unimaginable pain. His eyes felt as if they were glued shut. He felt the same ache as if he were back in the mindscape, while his stomach needlessly performed topsy-turvy back-flips, cartwheels and round-offs. The nauseating spells struck hard for the poor blond enigma. Meanwhile, his head was pounding from his sensitive hearing and his nose was burning from fragrant overdrive. In short, to say that the jinchuuriki was suffering now was the greatest understatement known to mankind.

_'Damn you, Fuzz-Butt, for making me feel like the underside of shoe-gunk! You goddamned trickster! You'll pay for that!'_ he roared in his mind as he felt the demonic presence inside him laugh uncontrollably at his misfortune.

**"I told you that I was not kidding, my precious guardian…Hin-hin…"** The prideful beast yipped in merriment.

The blue-eyed wonder could do nothing but fall back to sleep unknowingly for two consecutive days, adjusting to the changes that his body had undergone.

XXXXXXXXXX

_The sounds of a baby crying ominously echoed in a glade within the vast forest. A set of nine candles lit up the dark night surrounding the baby's point of view. A hazy image of the blond, now as a thirteen-year-old, hovered over his past self like he bore witness to an out-of-body experience._

'What the hell's going on?'

_Suddenly, before him stood a stories-tall red fox demon that balefully glared at the newborn, causing him to shriek in horror. That fear subsided into wonder as an equally tall toad summon plowed into the furry hide of the vulpine, distracting it almost immediately. While the beast got stunned by the ramming attack, several ethereal chain links of white energy entwined and pinned the demon's fleece in place._

'Those chains…' _Said fetters drew from a single source—a female dressed in a white gown, but stained in crimson, due to the loss of blood in her system. Those chains emptied out of her back and restrained the roaming force of nature. The woman, whose hair was as red as fire, edged closer to the newborn baby with a pained expression, hemoglobin dripping from the side of her lips._

_"N-Naruto…"_

_The ghastly Naruto's face assumed a look of shock. _'She…she knows me?'

_A few seconds later, the redheaded woman collapsed in a heap, shackles binding the fox receding into her back. The Kyuubi roared and descended on the duo, but not before something strange happened…_

_Trees._

_Dozens and dozens of verdant growth sprouted around the downed body of the woman and surrounded Naruto's vision…_

After his time of inactivity, the blond, fully rested, jolted awake and shakily stood on his two feet.

_'Whoa…That was some trippy dream…'_ It made little sense. Who was that woman, and how did she know his name? Why did he feel like he just relived a real nightmare that was brought to life? Was it a repressed memory that lay dormant within his mind? _'Ugh…my head is still pounding…'_ He licked his dried lips to moisten them, but to no avail. The cotton mouth brought upon by dehydration did just that to him.

He arched his back to hear a few pops to relieve the tension. Without knowing, he picked up two scents that emanated from the dark room where he was taken, feeling a bit dizzy in the process.

One was familiar. It had a twinge of cologne added in with a bit of dirt, sweat and ointment. He looked to where he had sensed the familiar aroma. His eyes widened as he saw Sasuke, within the dim lighting, unconscious, and his chest heaved up and down underneath white sheets, indicating that he was breathing. He heavily sighed in relief, aware that the brooding bastard was all right.

_'So, he gets to live another day, so I can wipe the floor with him later,'_ Naruto humored to himself as he indirectly picked up the second scent. It smelled like peaches, herbs, and more healing ointment, but of a stronger variety. He noticed the boy, or so he claimed to be, with long black tresses and peacefully closed eyelids.

_'Something doesn't seem right with him. His scent has a feminine quality to it.'_ Naruto was baffled at looking at the figure underneath blue covers, lying next to the lone Uchiha survivor.

Stifling a yawn, he smelled the delectable odor of food wafting from downstairs. So, following his nose, he tried to walk, but had to grip part of the wall that led to the door, due to the fact that his legs felt like jelly.

XXXXXXXXXX

Slowly but surely, the blond shinobi traveled down the stairs to see the rest of his team sitting at the dining room table, Inari, a dark-haired lad who had sported a fisher's hat and green overalls with a yellow shirt, his mother Tsunami, an indigo-haired woman who wore a pink and red shirt and a blue skirt, and the boy's grandfather and woman's father, Tazuna. All of them appeared to be in generally good health…and enjoying their prepared meals.

As soon as he stepped forward, the smells of the cuisine hit his nose at full force and wobbled back in dizziness, with his mouth slightly drooling.

Naruto spoke, in a somewhat deeper voice, "Ugh…my head is spinning. How long have I been out?"

Kakashi, who was at the table, reading _Icha-Icha Paradise_, gave his patented 'eye-smile,' which consisted of his exposed eyelid to assume an upside-down U-shape. He greeted the blond, "Good morning, Naruto. I see that you're up and moving around. You see, you've been out for two consecutive days…"

"Eh?" Naruto shouted in shock. "What do you mean by that?"

Kakashi, however, continued to relay the information to Naruto, unfazed. "…Well, to put it short, sweet and to the point, Zabuza is dead, Gatou was arrested and his funds were conveniently drained via direct use of a genjutsu," he smirked underneath the mask, "and Inari-kun here," pointing at the little kid, who blushed lightly in embarrassment while he finished up, "rallied the town to stand up to Gatou's band of thugs, and they high-tailed it out of here, with the aid of my **Bunshin no Jutsu: Kakashi-ryuu**…" Naruto thought that he saw a large grin from behind the mask. "And, on top of that, the townspeople helped with carrying you three back safe and sound.

"However…" His voice took on a more serious tone as he eyed one of his pupils. "We must not let Haku out of our sight. Even though the kid left on his own will with Zabuza, we will not know for sure for where his intentions lie…"

"Uh…Kakashi-sensei…" Naruto started but was interrupted by the little kid who idolized his orange-clad hero.

"Hey…Naruto-nii-chan…" Inari looked at the blue-eyed kid in confusion. "You look…_different_…"

The whisker-marked genin looked at the boy with equal confusion. "What are you talking about, Inari? I feel fine…at least, for now…"

"What I mean is…" Inari was interrupted by Sakura, who had just gotten up from the table and approached the blond idiot with fists clenched.

"You had me worried sick, you idiot!" the pink-haired kunoichi screeched at the top of her lungs. A vein bulged on one of her temples. "And what did you do to _my_ Sasuke-kun?"

"Say, Sakura-chan, could you keep it down? You may blow out my eardrums." Naruto used his pinky to swipe the inside his ear. He felt that his finger was…off in a way, like his fingernail had grown.

Sakura reared back to deck the blond enigma and fired away…

Surprisingly, that never happened…

In the blink of an eye, Naruto dodged the blow and was immediately behind the aspiring kunoichi, holding back the fist that was about to strike him, while leaving a miniature dust-cloud, similar to when Kakashi moved behind him during the bell test to perform his **Konohagakure Hiden Taijutsu Ougi: Sennen Goroshi**. Those who had witnessed the stunt pulled by the number-one unpredictable, hyperactive, knucklehead ninja had their eyes widened to the size of saucers, save for Kakashi, who had a slightly widened eye.

One thought came to everyone's minds…

_'How the hell did he get to be _that_ fast…?'_

"Naruto, you moron!" Sakura roared while flailing about. "What's the big idea? Let me go!"

"Gomen, Sakura-chan…I guess, uh, reflexes?" He grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, that's got to be it." He released his hold on the bewildered Sakura.

_'He sure has gotten quicker, but I'm not sure if he'll still match up to Sasuke-kun,'_ she beamed inwardly.

**_'Shannaro! That's right!'_** Inner Sakura beamed for joy, holding up a banner with a chibi-Sasuke caricature with the characters for 'You're Number One' written on it.

When he released his pink-haired crush, a few things were making themselves known to Naruto. First, he heard his voice with a slightly deeper tone. Next, he felt uncomfortable in his patented jumpsuit, almost as if it felt too tight. And finally, he noticed that he was a bit above Sakura's eye-level. With eyes wide, his muscles tensed and he rushed to the bathroom upstairs.

Rushing into the bathroom, he turned on the lights and gazed at the mirror. His eyes bugged out due to the considerable changes…

The blond wonder was six inches taller than his standard height. His cerulean orbs had slit pupils, his canine teeth grew somewhat, his ears had become somewhat pointed like an elf that he had read about from a discarded children's fantasy book. Naruto's fingernails grew a few millimeters in length. The whisker-like engravings became a bit more prominent on his face, but it was insignificant compared to the other features. His muscle mass had become more well-toned than normal.

_'So…_these _were the side-effects…'_

Naruto felt…better than before, almost as if he felt stronger and ready to take anything that the world threw at him. He looked down at his hands and scrutinized them.

_'Hmm…_' he mused as he examined his diminutive, claw-like nails. _'I think I should ask Sakura-chan for her nail file…'_

Walking back down to the stairs, he took note of a plate reserved for him. It did not take a moment's notice for Naruto to start digging in, voracious appetite and all.

After a full gut and a high-decibel belch, he approached Kakashi-sensei. "Can we talk sensei…in _private_?" Naruto asked his cyclopean jounin-sensei.

With a nod from the Copy-Ninja, they walked out of the rinky-dink sea cottage that belonged to the family of three and into the forest a few kilometers out.

"So," the masked Hatake started after a grueling silence, "what's on your mind, Naruto?" he prompted.

Naruto scratched behind his golden locks in nervousness. "I bet you know of…_him_, right?" Kakashi knew exactly to what Naruto was referring.

"I do," Kakashi replied to his blond-haired charge and put away his soft-core porno book. His eye visibly shrunk. "What did he say to you, Naruto?" He gave his now undivided attention unto his student, but his posture presented a bit of alarm and warning for his student. "It's also not wise to consult with a cunning bijuu like…your furry tenant."

**"You don't see that the one-eyed copycat is simply trying to keep you from getting strong…do you?"** the ninth tailed-beast prodded, casting doubt within Naruto's mind.

"Don't worry, Kakashi-sensei," the younger ninja assuaged. "I struck a deal with the old flea-bag, and well, this is the result." That did little to stop the constant growling in the back of his head.

"I see that, but I'm serious, Naruto," the ashen-haired assassin gravely intoned, not really amused in the slightest. "You'll know the stigma when we get back. Being in cahoots with the demon fox is just throwing all caution to the wind."

Naruto looked down to the ground, eyes downcast. "It's not like I'll gain any recognition, anyway."

"Oh, ye of little faith," Kakashi waved him off, "I know you already changed quite a few people's thoughts on you with your simple words and thinking."

"Oh, yeah? Name them."

"Well, there's the Sandaime, the folks at Ichiraku, Iruka, Ebisu, Konohamaru, and me." After ticking off points with his right hand, the older man showed his open palm to the boy, in addition to using his other hand. "See? You can count the people whose opinion you have altered on one hand, and I'm sure Zabuza would have been another, had he lived…"

A look of remorse skimmed Naruto's facial expression before it withered away. "So, what are we going to do with Haku, then?"

Kakashi tugged on his mask and hummed. "I don't know. He never was a shinobi listed under Kiri's Bingo Book. He was Zabuza's secret weapon, so I don't think we have to contend with hunter-ninja after him."

"Well, about that…" Naruto uneasily observed. "I don't think Haku is who he said he was…"

"Oh?" That got the Copy Ninja's interest. "Why's that, and how so?"

"I don't know how to phrase it, Sensei, but…his smell…seems off…"

"A perk given to you by the…furry problem?"

He paused before nodding and tacking on his second deduction. "Plus, I don't think a guy is all that curvy under the bulky kimono he battled in. Hell, I didn't even see an Adam's apple, for crying out loud!"

"Sharper eyesight, too?" Kakashi sighed and shook his head in dismay. "Anything else that I should be made aware of?"

"He said something about an Uchiha Madara fellow, who he thought was responsible behind subduing him from another host and being flung to destroy Konoha."

The jounin processed what he said before he calmed down and decided to take the information and give it to Sandaime-sama when they return to Konoha. He gave the blond a scrutinizing eye. "Naruto, you do know that Uchiha Madara lived around the time when Konoha was founded, don't you? That was well over eighty years ago, and I don't think that he'd still be alive…"

"I don't know, sensei," Naruto answered. "The fox didn't tell me. He just only told me of what happened to him before his eventual resealing. He also left me with a pretty…odd word of warning…"

"And that would be?"

"Something about the man donning the black cloak with red clouds…lest you regret awakening the slumbering beast…"

"Hm…" Mulling that over, Kakashi's lone eye dissected the blond like a live specimen, almost to the point of undressing him with that dark iris. "You grew, too…"

"Yeah," the bewhiskered ninja grumbled. "Old Fuzz-Butt made me outgrow my clothes!"

"Speaking of 'Old Fuzz-Butt,' as you say," the Copy Ninja began to relay, eliciting a venomous growl from the Kyuubi, "I need to check the seal. This won't take long."

"Okay…" he drew out the last syllable. "What do you want me to do, Sensei?"

"Take off your shirt," he bluntly responded.

"Eh?" The newly transformed genin started to sweat around his brow. "That sounds _very_ wrong, Kakashi-sensei…"

"What?" Don't you trust me, Naruto?" his teacher asked him, playfully mocking in tone. The upturned eye disarmed the kid almost every single time.

The youngest on Team Seven sighed and removed his jacket and blue shirt, red wisp of smoke licking the center as its obscure emblem. "Now, what else?" he all but demanded, wanting this awkward moment to hurry up and pass.

"Hold still," he advised while channeling his chakra into his digits.

The hardboiled veteran poked and prodded the sealing array on Naruto's stomach, which caused said blond to giggle to the point of hysterics.

After finishing the procedure, the older man stepped back and gave the design one more once-over. "So far, Naruto, you're in the green."

"Well, that's great and all," the blue-eyed shinobi began to complain, "but what am I going to do with clothes that don't fit me, anymore?"

**"And for the gods' sake, tone it down on the orange, brat!"** the carmine phantom locked away inside him bellowed. **"It's unsightly!"**

_'Like you?' _Naruto smoothly retorted, getting a snarl as a response.

**"Point of clarification: I'm vermilion…that means _reddish_-orange. There's a difference!"**

While the blond went toe-to-toe in a duel of words with his ethereal occupant, Kakashi looked off into one direction before focusing his eye on the boy. "There just so happens to be a clothing store not too far from here. However, in lieu of the recent economic duress the Wave has fallen under, there might not be that much in the variety."

They proceeded to head down to the Wave Country shopping district, hoping to find a set of clothes for the now-taller blond. Traveling down toward the district, Naruto was wondering how his team was going to take it as to how he had gotten taller and more different in just a few days. Luckily, his sensei and he decided to classify it as the scapegoat of an awakening 'bloodline,' which was partially true…just, not _all_ the way.

As fate would have it, they found a loose-fitting brown shirt and black pants and bought it with relative ease. To their fortune, they also found a pair of black ninja footwear to accommodate for the jinchuuriki's somewhat larger feet.

After buying the clothes, Naruto quickly changed into them and it felt more comfortable than his tight outfit. In fact, it had almost fit perfectly, save for some sagging cloth around the sleeves and ankles.

"Sensei, do you have any tape for pulling back all this extra cloth? It'll also help me with attaching my brace of kunai." Right before his eyes, a roll of the adhesive fumbled its way into the blond's floppy hands.

"…You could use better lessons in dexterity," Kakashi dully remarked, eye lidded in boredom.

Walking out of the store, they were approached by a rather tall, lanky young man who was in his mid-twenties. He had short, brown hair and blue eyes, and he was wearing a teal shirt and tan workpants, along with black construction boots.

The gentleman seemed to look familiar to the blond and gray-haired ninja, but then they recognized him as one of Tazuna-san's supporters and subordinates of the bridge-building project.

"Uh…can we help you, sir?" Kakashi inquired. "You seem a bit lost."

"Oh! Sorry. Kind of spaced out there, for a second. Greetings," said the young man, seeming a bit distracted. "I take it you must be Konoha ninja, right?"

"Um…Yes, we are…" the ex-ANBU Captain deadpanned.

"And you helped with clearing up the mess that spilled into the Wave Country?"

"Of course! We were hired for the job, after all!" the smaller teen boomed. "What rock have you been living under?"

"That's fantastic! Oh, by the way, I'm Douhaken Hisao, and it's an honor to see our heroes…eh, what were your names again?" He sheepishly grinned as the pair of shinobi looked at him with unabashed disbelief.

"I am Hatake Kakashi," stated the gray-haired Copy-Ninja, "and this is one of my charges…"

"Uzumaki Naruto, dattebayo!" the boy announced with a lot of gusto, thumbing his chest in the process.

"Uzumaki, huh?" Hisao asked to himself but loud enough for the two shinobi to hear. He wondered where exactly did he hear that name before…

"Ah," the brunet realized. "Well, blow me away! Uzumaki-san, I think that I may have some information for you, if you're willing to listen to my ramblings…"

Both Naruto and Kakashi turned their heads to each other and back at the mysterious man with puzzled eyes and owlishly blinked.

_'This guy is a bit flaky…'_ Naruto declared with no change in his assessment of the man before him.

**"I concur…"**

_'What does he know about the Uzumaki clan?'_ the Copy-Ninja wondered to himself.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N**: **Good day (or evening, depending on your time zone), ladies and gentlemen. As noted before, I'm going to be doing some overhaul to previous chapters to ensure that they're up the current standard. To insert a time marker, this is the author from 2011, not the one from 2008. I decided to take some criticism into consideration to improve the overall quality of this story, and as declared, it shall be updated as such, factoring in recent reveals that never showed up until the current and recently past arcs. That noted, you can expect that some things pertaining to fanon will get the axe. Why, you may ask? Well, I should write for better quality, and I need to do away with the old, childish mentality that my former self had written down.**

Next time, on _Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid_…

_Pillage and Plunder: Sacred Scrolls and a Tiny Stowaway_

**Romaji/Jutsu Guide**

_Icha-Icha_: roughly means "make-out"

**Bunshin no Jutsu: Kakashi-ryuu**: Clone Technique: Kakashi-style

**Konohagakure Hiden Taijutsu Ougi: Sennen Goroshi**: Secret Art Body Technique of the Hidden Leaf: One Thousand Years of Death


	4. Pillage & Plunder

**A/N**: Before I begin, I would like to say something. I would like to work with more than just a single review of "update soon," "please update," "interesting" or something along the lines of that. Although I am grateful for the praise, I would like for you to give me an appraisal (that is synonymous with "review" or "assessment," if you didn't get the dry, educated humor).

I will say that I have no beta reader for my story. Personally, I am the alpha and beta reader of my story. I go back and double-check where I made a few mistakes with regards to spelling, grammar and tenses. In short, I'm obsessive-compulsive about the aforementioned. That's what takes it a while for it to get uploaded. And after it is uploaded, I have to go back and give words in-between spaces due to the fact that the uploading process screws up with the spacing in my files.

To WolfLord04, thank you for pointing out that error on my part. It is now **Bunshin no Jutsu: Kakashi-ryuu** in the third chapter. The **Kage** has been dropped.

Anyway, on a good note, I had received many, many hits. I didn't know that I would draw this much attention. I hope to have my story be in the same light as Tellemicus Sundance's _The Legacy of the Rasengan_, although, I think that it may not get there. But that's just the pessimist side of me talking. Just like Naruto, I too "won't give up."

As I regress, this chapter is a bit longer than expected, but what can I say? Most of the stuff in this chapter was necessary for the story to naturally progress.

Well, let's keep it going, ladies and gentlemen…And I apologize that it's taking so long for them to get back to Konoha, but some things need to happen before their return.

Well, let's give it a whirl…

Last time:

"_Ah," Hisao realized. "Uzumaki-san, I think that I know of something that will aid you in your future, my good fellow…"_

_Both Naruto and Kakashi turned their heads to each other and back at the mysterious man with puzzled eyes and blinked._

_**Chapter Four:**__ Pillage and Plunder: Sacred Scrolls and a Tiny Stowaway_

The genin and jounin eyed the eerily happy Wave resident with incredulity. What on earth would a _civilian_ know about _shinobi_ life?

To break the eerie silence, the golden-locked genin spoke up, "Um…What is it that you're referring to, Hisao-san?"

"Well, you _are_ an Uzumaki, right?" the dark-haired man asked the blue-eyed wonder with an eccentric smile. With a nod and a look that read 'Of course I'm a damn Uzumaki, so get to the point,' Hisao continued. "Okay, follow me. We need to talk about this in privacy, Hatake-san included." Warily eyeing the mysterious subordinate of Tazuna, they followed him to a secluded and abandoned dock. Sitting on a few well-placed plank boards, both listened intently at his story.

"Well, rumor has it that your clan used to be a group of wealthy merchants in the former Whirlpool Country in Shiogakure, the Village Hidden in the Tides. The ruins of the country lie in an archipelago which is several miles south of the Land of Waves."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "And the point is…?"

"I'm getting to that," the blue-eyed young man responded. "I had also found out that your clan had its own ninja force that had kept several, highly-powerful skill and ninjutsu scrolls in their possession." That portion of information grabbed the attention of the jinchuuriki as well as his jounin-sensei.

"Unfortunately," Hisao sighed as he sat on the pier's edge and looked out at the sea. "Many greedy and power-hungry shinobi wanted to seize control of those scrolls before the Hidden Tide became a truly terrifying force. Numerous attempts at seizing those precious items ended in futility. However, while everything had been running smoothly in that village, mercenaries and other ninja from hidden villages far and wide, in a last-ditch effort, pillaged and ransacked it during the last Great Shinobi War, leaving it in a blazing ruin, in an attempt to maintain those sacred scrolls. There were only a few survivors out of the fray that migrated to the Land of Waves, with the scrolls intact, before a select few trekked to Konoha for sanctuary, while the others who were incapable of going resided here. The group consisted of other Uzumaki, as well as some of the dispersed Haruno clan, and a now-extinct clan of wildcat-summoning shinobi known as the Sakibou…"

Naruto and Kakashi's eyes widened a bit from this tidbit of information. The Uzumaki _and_ Haruno clans came from Shiogakure? Well, a select few of the Haruno clan had thrived from near and far, from Kusa to Kiri, perfecting their own style of techniques.

"Years later, Gatou arrived on the scene," the young man continued with subtle rage emanating from his eyes. "Through the use of his dirty money, that vile snake attracted some of Whirlpool's enemies into the Land of Waves, killing off some of the aforementioned shinobi, which then led to the extinction of the Sakibou clan, along with some of the civilian natives of our country. It was then that Gatou managed to get his filthy hands on the scrolls. Most of the powerful parchments traveled with the other wanderers into the Land of Fire."

He turned around to the shinobi. "You Konoha shinobi came to the right place at the right time. Since Gatou only worked with mercenaries at the time (save for Zabuza), they and he could not properly use the scrolls, so he stashed them for safekeeping on his luxury barge, just in case he had to resort to using more powerful shinobi as a means to put an end to our rebellious efforts. That or he would have sold them on the black market to the highest bidder." He shuddered at that thought.

"Anyway, from my reliable source network, I do believe that those scrolls are on that barge in Nami Sound. But be very careful while on that ship. Who knows what kinds of booby traps are there on that strange luxury liner?" He stood up and dusted off the dirt from his trousers as he finished. "I think that it would be worth it, for you as well as the young Haruno lady. From what I heard from Tazuna while on our lunch break, she could use all the help in the world for her to change her attitude as to the true path of shinobi, meaning that she shouldn't be in it if she were to impress that Uchiha kid, but develop as an individual in her own right."

'_Wow…' _Naruto thought with a surprised look etched onto his face. _'I didn't know the drunken old man could be that observant…and wise, too…'_

'_Ah…Who would've thought that Tazuna-san was wise, as well as courageous?'_ Kakashi mentally asked himself as he smirked. Aside from withholding information from the cyclopean jounin, his respect for the old geezer jumped a peg or two.

XXXXXXXXXX

Relaxing on a sofa in his sea-cottage, aforementioned bridge builder felt a tickle in his nose and sneezed, with his corrective eyewear flying off his face and onto his chest.

'_Hmm…_' Tazuna mused to himself. _'Looks like someone's talking about me…He-he…'_

He put on his glasses and glanced up at the clock. His eyes bugged out.

'_Damn! I gotta get back to work!'_

He quickly shot up from the sofa, put on his hard-hat and dashed out of the cottage to his impatiently waiting crew of workmen.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Well, I need to get back to work. Knowing Tazuna, he'll probably rip off my head if I were to be caught shirking work again," the brunet young man said jokingly. He was walking onto solid ground from the pier before he paused and looked over his shoulder. "Good luck to you all, and I hope that you will visit us again after you are finished with your mission."

Coming to a realization, he turned around to face the two shinobi. "Oh, and by the way, just let the policemen on guard duty know that you are on shinobi affairs if you want to explore the abandoned ship. I'm sure that they won't hassle you, but you may need to show some identification. There have been a few attempted break-ins into the ship by some of the more desperate townspeople."

Naruto pointed up at his hitai-ate with his right index finger. "Will this be enough proof, Hisao-san?" The forehead protector gleamed in the noontime sunlight.

The blue-eyed young man snickered to himself. "Oh, right. Those hitai-ate are a dead giveaway, so I think that they should suffice. I should've been paying more attention." He rubbed the back of his head, grinning sheepishly, while the blond and silver-haired ninja had a bead of sweat behind their scalps.

"It's around noon, so that means that the lunch break is just about over. See you guys at the opening ceremonies." The odd supporter of Tazuna dashed off to the direction of the bridge.

"So, Naruto," Kakashi said. "What do you say if I assigned you this _actual _C-ranked sub-mission? I'll come along, just in case anything happens." He re-opened his book of smut, waiting for the blond-headed boy's response.

"Ossu!" Naruto saluted, beaming for joy. Not only would Naruto get pay for an A-ranked mission, but also get a C-rank mission bonus for retrieving some documents, hopefully clan techniques.

"Okay, so here's the mission," started the scarecrow-ninja. "We go in, get the necessary scrolls within a few hours and come right out. It's just as simple as that. Here…catch." A few packaging scrolls were tossed at the blond enigma, who had then caught all of them without any effort. "Pack them into those scrolls. That way, our hands won't be full." The jounin of the squad gave his patented eye-smile to the blue-eyed wonder. "All right, Naruto, let's move out."

XXXXXXXXXX

Within a few minutes, along with some directions from the local townspeople, they arrived at Gatou's luxury vessel. The ship had to be several hundred feet in length and the outside looked as if it received a recent paint job. It appeared to exude a grandiose but barbaric and overwhelming feel to it. To the eyes of the ninja, looks can definitely be deceiving.

Approaching the guards on duty, they asked for entry, but said sentries were a bit hesitant to let them in.

"C'mon," Naruto whined. "We're here for shinobi-related business. Can't you see that the forehead protector proves that we're ninja?" Pointing at the glistening hitai-ate on his forehead, the lookouts scrutinized the headband.

"Listen, kid," a blonde-haired female guard started. "This is the fourth time that someone gave us that kind of excuse, and they turned out to be phonies. What makes you think that you're a true ninja, huh?"

Holding back his rage for a bit (with a _lot_ of whatever self-control he possessed), he put his hands in a cross-shaped hand seal and formed two shadow clones. "Is _this_ good enough for you? This is the **Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**, a technique forbidden to a genin, but I'm an exception." He gave a satisfying smirk while crossing his arms. His clones mirrored the original's posture.

With eyes wide, the guard-woman turned to her partner and whispered, "I think that they're the real deal." The other guard nodded silently as she turned to the blond ninja. "And just what is your name, kid?"

"Uzumaki Naruto is the name," Naruto answered flatly and then one of his clones pointed behind him with his thumb. "And this is my jounin-sensei, Hatake Kakashi-san."

The visible eye of the aforementioned jounin widened, wondering where Naruto learned how to conduct himself in a professional manner, let alone showing some shred of respect for his instructor. "We were sent from Konoha," pointing to his hitai-ate, and once again, it pinged in the afternoon sunlight, "to protect and guard Tazuna-san, the bridge-builder who is trying to pull you out of the rut that Gatou forced upon you."

'_This kid is serious,' _thought the guard-woman. "All right, we'll let you in to investigate. We'll only give you until two-thirty to investigate and no later. Do you understand?"

Mentally jumping for joy, the blond dispelled the clones and climbed up the ladder, with jounin-sensei in tow.

XXXXXXXXXX

"_**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**_"

Five copies of Naruto and Kakashi appeared from the smoke caused by the abovementioned technique. With a silent nod of communication, four groups consisting of one blond-haired and one silver-haired ninja split up to traverse through the narrow corridors of the ship's dark interior, while leaving a fifth group at the main entryway, in case some individuals were to get through the sentinels and into the ferry.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Clone Pair One, Location: underneath Starboard Deck)

"Be sure to watch your step," commanded the Kakashi clone. "Like Hisao-san mentioned, there could be potential traps lying in wait…"

"Oh, c'mon, Kakashi-sensei," the Naruto clone replied. "It's not like there _are_ going to be booby traps…" Without looking, the blond clone's foot pressed down a tile. Feeling as if the ground caved in, he looked down. "What…?"

A faint glimmer came from a distance down the murky hall, and suddenly, the glimmer became a kunai that whizzed to where the blue-eyed replica stood.

Picking up on the threat immediately, the Naruto clone was heaved back by the Kakashi clone with a push to the opposite side of the wall as the sharp knife zoomed by harmlessly and lodged itself two inches into the other end of the wall.

"Care to reconsider that thought about traps, Naruto?" the Kakashi bunshin asked with a raised eyebrow. "Remember, in the shinobi world, you have to—"

"—look underneath the underneath," finished the Naruto-copy, who was rubbing his back from the unexpected force against the iron wall. "I know that already…"

"I'm telling you this because you still don't get it, Naruto," retorted the slightly irritated jounin replication. "Now, I'm going to say this one more time. Be cautious, and don't touch anything."

XXXXXXXXXX

(Clone Pair Two, Location: Ship's Hull, Level 4)

Deep in the hull of the ship, a one-eyed jounin smacked his head against his open palm in utter frustration. After telling his Naruto clone to watch out and pay attention, said clone fell through a trap door and dissipated into nothingness with a wispy "poof" sound. The Kakashi clone shook his head and traveled onward, all alone.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Clone Pair Three, Location: Ship, Level 3)

The two clones faced off with their hands behind their back. A bead of sweat ran down their brow in uneasiness. Both reared back their hands and shoved them forward to one another…

"Janken!!" both had yelled at the same time.

The Kakashi replica held out his hand, which was flat and palm-down. Paper.

The Naruto duplicate, however, held out his hand, which had two fingers open with the rest of his fingers balled into a fist. Scissors.

"It looks like I win," announced the blond-copy. "And that means we'll take my route." Strutting in confidence with his eyes closed, the Naruto-bunshin failed to realize that he had just walked past a motion-sensor seal with the kanji for "fire" inked onto it.

Said seal was pulsating, emanating a reddish hue before blasting a superheated burst of flame at the blue-eyed replica.

"AAAAHHH!!!" the poor charred blond ran around, ablaze and panicking.

"Stop, drop and roll, Naruto!" yelled the worried Kakashi-clone. Unfortunately, the Naruto clone went critical and dispelled into a puff of smoke. The Kakashi-replica sighed heavily as he continued onward, coming to a dead end.

'_It's like a maze with death-traps in here…'_ he thought as he backtracked to where he started.

XXXXXXXXXX  
(Clone Pair Four, Main Deck)

The blond clone managed to stifle a yawn and covered his mouth. It was boring to keep a watchful eye, acting as sentries watching over the guards who were guarding the ship. It felt rather redundant. All he could do to entertain himself was to count the number of floorboards on their side of the ship. He passed off that idea and turned to his perverted sensei and read the cover of the book.

'_Make-Out Paradise, eh?' _The Naruto clone mentally noted._ 'I really should get a book of my own, but I absolutely _despise_ reading…OH, I know…'_

"Oi, Kakashi-sensei," the blond-copy said, breaking the golden silence. "Can you teach me some cool jutsu that I can use?"

"Sorry Naruto," Kakashi said without looking up. "I'm kind of…busy for the moment…"

That comment riled up the blond enigma. "Oh yeah, so what's so important in that book of yours?"

"Well," Kakashi started. "I'm at the point where Natsuki is about to seduce two guys at once. She just removed the belt buckles from both men with her just two feet…and no hands." He gave a perverted chuckle.

Naruto recognized the signs immediately by scent alone. His teacher was giving off a lot of testosterone and his face was getting a little flush. The perverted giggle and that little excerpt pieced it all together…

He was getting aroused…by a book of…_erotica_. Perverted Trash Central.

The clone narrowed his eyes, balled his cracking knuckles and secretly vowed to burn whatever copies of that literary garbage that he would find and castrate the author…or whoever was named _Jiraiya_.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Konoha, same time, Public Bath House)

Currently visiting Konoha for a little 'research,' a lecherous old man with long, spiky-white hair and red tattoos that lined under the corners of his eyes and cheeks was glancing with his portable telescope toward the women's section of the public bath house. His red geta were glued with chakra on the rooftop on the men's side of the public bath.

He giggled inwardly. _'This is grand, perfect for my research. The women here are _oh-so _lovely…'_

His musings were cut short when a tickle hit the inside of his nasal cavities. He endeavored to subdue it, but it was inevitable. He sneezed pretty loudly, which alerted the now-screaming women that had been his "topic of study" for the past few minutes. A small wooden pail was launched his way, which promptly conked him on his cranium and knocked him back.

As he slid off the roof and thumped onto the ground, he heard a faint rumbling that grew in intensity. Looking up, out of his bird-clouded daze, he saw the stampede of angry, toweled women with fists clenched and waving, screaming for his untimely demise. And before he could get up to make his getaway, he was soundly pummeled with slaps and backhands, along with a few kicks to the nether-regions.

With vengeance paid and anger vented, the contented women trudged off, leaving a heaping mess that was the legendary Gama-Sennin, the 'gallant' Jiraiya of the Densetsu no Sannin, with birds chirping "baka" wildly about his head.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Real Naruto and Kakashi, Captain's Quarters)

While he was trying to stash a few scrolls inside the storage scroll in the fancily decorated captain's quarters (that was presumably Gatou's office), Naruto's eyes twitched constantly when his clones were being dispelled. He had then taken note of that he could see what his clones had seen before they had gone critical.

"Ano, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked as he turned to his jounin-sensei. "How is that I can see what my clones have done before they go critical?"

The cyclopean jounin turned to his blond-haired charge. "I thought that you should've known by now."

"…Know about what, Kakashi-sensei?" The blue-eyed wonder was confused as to where his instructor was directing the conversation.

Giving his patented eye-smile, the jounin answered the befuddled enigma that was his pupil. "A shadow clone is not an ordinary clone. It is just like an ordinary body. Any experience or knowledge the clones gain during their existence is transferred to the user once they are dispersed but causes mental fatigue when they are fully dispelled at one time. My suggestion would be to dispel a few of the clones at a time to ease with the mental fatigue."

The gray-haired adult continued. "Also, it helps out greatly while training. For example, if two of your clones go through the exact same training, then you get twice the benefit from it."

Seeing a slightly befuddled Naruto, he continued to clarify. "In other words, Naruto is that if you have two clones doing the same training, then you would accomplish the same amount in half the time…and with a third, in one-third of the time…and a_ thousand_ in one-thousandth, if you can make that many. Are you with me so far, Naruto?"

The blond ninja-in-training nodded. "Now I get it…So, if I were to learn something that would normally take two days by myself, then can I use a clone to help me learn it in a day?"

"Now you're catching on, Naruto," Kakashi stated as he placed another scroll in one of his storage scrolls. "And if you were to train with up to one thousand clones, should you have the chakra capacity, then what would normally take twenty years by yourself would be completed in one week."

Naruto was flabbergasted by what he could do with his technique. "However, physical training, in and of itself, cannot be gained through the use of shadow clones. Only you can do that, since your muscle memory only takes note of how you condition your body." Naruto's smile faded a bit. "But luckily, chakra control exercises and scroll-reading for you will be a thing in the past. Just have some of your clones read up on ninjutsu theory and climb trees while you do physical training. You can achieve wonders in only a week's time." After hearing this, Naruto grinned at the possibilities. Now he, the proclaimed "dead last" of this year's academy genin could finally catch up or surpass his class.

Their musings were cut short when they smelled a scent akin to a wild animal. The tiny tuft of tawny fur that they had smelled passed by the cabin in a blur. Naruto summoned one his clones and told him to keep packing while he ran off to catch the little mysterious fur-ball. He had a feeling that the aura of the little ball of fuzz had felt…a bit familiar.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Gatou's barge, whereabouts unknown)

'_Now where could that thing have run off to?'_ Naruto pondered when he felt a tug in the back of his mind. _'What's up, Kyuubi-sama? You've been awfully quiet lately…'_

He heard the faint echo of Kyuubi's voice resounding through the recesses of his sub-consciousness. **'****It just so happens that you are chasing down one of my vulpine brethren, kid.'**

'_Wait…how did a fox get on this ship?'_

Kyuubi appeared to be shrugging his shoulders…that is, if they were shoulders. **'I haven't the slightest idea, boy. I'm not up-to-date with current events, you know. But, I can conjecture that he stowed away here for shelter before we showed up. I can detect the oldest scent to be roughly eighteen to twenty hours prior to our arrival.'**

As the demon vessel rounded the corner, he was knocked off his feet by a flying tackle from the tiny ball of fur. As the jinchuuriki gazed at the now-stationary fox standing on his chest, it had an ocher-colored coat, with a hint of red in it. It had an acute muzzle and a bushy tail that looked like a paintbrush with white dye at the tip and appeared to be no more than twenty inches in length, including the tail, and thirteen inches in height. The fur around its paws was very dark and close to a black hue. What had caught the blue-eyed demon container's eye was the small dabble of white fur on its right side, near the ribs. Said dabble of white fur looked like a cloud-shaped birthmark.

"It must be alone; separated from its family," the blond said to the ocher-hued canine. The vulpine runt barked in three long syllables that sounded like "wow-wow-wow."

'_I can't understand this thing, Kyuubi-sama…' _He thought in his mind. _'What's it saying?'_

'**Unfortunately, I can't comprehend him as well, however,'** Kyuubi thought for a moment before continuing, **'I need for you to channel some of my chakra to establish a link with him. That includes you as well.'**

'_How can you tell that it's a "he"…?'_ He was puzzled but looked under the hind legs of the fox. _'Oh…'_

'**Hurry up kit,'** rushed the youkai kitsune.** 'We don't have all day. We need to get back to the captain's quarters. Time is almost winding down for us to be on this ship.'**

'_Tch…fine… '_

Focusing intently for a minute, he felt a tug at the seal on his stomach and a small bit of youki poured from the fingers of the jinchuuriki into the mind of the little fox cub. The fox felt a bit subdued by the "strange-yet-familiar" energy that came from the whisker-marked kid.

'**Now we play the waiting game to see if it worked…'**

"Hey there, buddy. Are you okay?" asked the blue-eyed demon vessel.

"I'm…I'm…I'm lost," the fox mumbled incoherently.

"Yeah, I'm kind of lost too. What's your name? My name's Naruto. Remember it."

"Wh…Wh…Where am I…N-Naru-Naruto?" the no-named cub asked with mumbles.

"You are on a ship in a harbor. I take it that you live in the woods in Wave Country, right?"

"I…I don't know…I h-have no home." The blond jinchuuriki had an eyebrow raised as the nameless fox continued with stutters, getting accustomed to human speech. "M-My p-parents were being h-hunted, s-so I r-ran to s-s-safety."

"So you're all alone in this world, too, huh?" asked the blue-eyed wonder. "I'll tell you what. How about I take you in? That way we won't have to be alone again. I hope that Kakashi-sensei is okay with the idea…"

The fox yipped in accordance with the blue-eyed whisker-marks. "Great…now…to give you a name…" Naruto looked long and hard at the innocent face of the fox cub and then glanced over at his cloud-shaped birthmark on his right side.

_He has a cloud-shaped birthmark…and he runs fast, as if he had a burst of speed…Ah, that's it!_

He looked into the gray eyes of the fox and said, "From now on, how about that I call you Doshaburi?" With what appeared to be a nod from the newly named Doshaburi, Naruto continued as he stood up, placing Doshaburi on the floor. "Okay Doshaburi-chan, let's go back and find that perverted sensei of ours."

"N-Naruto…w-w-what's a s-s-sensei?" the cloud-marked fox asked.

"A sensei is an instructor, of sorts," Naruto answered, "but more importantly, he's a teacher of ninja basics and techniques, as well as survival tactics. A ninja is my profession as well as his, obviously. As shinobi, we take missions that are worth a certain amount, depending on the level of difficulty and the time limit, if there is any, and execute them to the best of our ability. Failure usually isn't an option. The business can be a bit risky on account of more dangerous missions, but I wanted to become a ninja so I can become Hokage, so everyone will have to look up to me and acknowledge my existence."

"H-Hokage? What's that, Naruto?"

"A Kage, or 'Shadow,' is the top-ranking shinobi within their respective hidden villages. Basically, in tandem with the head council and the daimyo, the Kage can set laws, creeds and ordinances to maintain the peace. Also, the Kage is one with his or her people. That is why I want to become Hokage, so I can protect those that I care about with my life on the line. I love the village, although most of the population shuns me…"

His face fell with a sad smile but quickly replaced his mask. "But, anyway, we need to get back to Kakashi-sensei. Come on Dosha-chan, so we can leave. We only have twenty minutes left to be on this boat." With a new companion in tow, fox-boy and foxy companion retraced their steps via sense of smell, while chatting along the way.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Captain's Quarters)

"Oi, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto said in his 'normal' tone, which was a bit brash and loud. "I have something to ask you before we leave this ship."

The one-eyed scarecrow turned from his handiwork, threw on his backpack of scrolls and glanced at the beaming blond with his hands behind his back. "Okay, Naruto…I'm all ears…What is it?"

"Ano…I was wondering…" He revealed the small ocher-hued blur from before, which was a small fox. "Can I keep him?"

Kakashi looked wide-eyed at the furry little rascal in the blond's cradled arms. It was certain that after the Kyuubi attack twelve years ago, most of the villagers either had an absolute disdain or an absolute fear of foxes. To Kakashi, he was indifferent to them. In fact, he had a reverence for any class of canines. "You do know how some of the villagers will look at you if you do bring a fox into Konoha, right?"

His eye widened twofold when he heard the tiny, stuttering voice of Doshaburi. "I-It's o-okay, Kakashi-sensei. I p-promise t-to stay out of the w-way. P-Plus, N-Naruto said that he would protect his p-p-precious p-people, m-me inc-included."

Kakashi's visible eye rolled in the back of his head and promptly fainted. Sure he had seen summoned _nin-ken_ that have spoken (along with many other bizarre things in his lifetime), but never had he seen a _naturally occurring_ fox speak that way.

"I guess that he couldn't take to you talking, ne Dosha-chan?" The blond jinchuuriki was answered by a lick to his face. "This, Dosha-chan, is the beginning of a new life for the both of us." He smiled as he stroked behind the head of his little, furry cloudburst.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The new addition to Squad Seven is an ocher-colored canine that can speak. How will the rest of his team cope with his physical changes, along with the talking, vulpine critter?

Jikai… (Next time…) on _Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Identity Crisis: Accepting the Nuke-Nin_

Naruto: Nani!? I knew something didn't add up…

I hope that you enjoyed it. One major thing though, and read this carefully…PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW THAT IS WORTH SOME INSIGHT TO ME!

Please avoid stuff like "interesting," "I like it," "keep up the good work," "update soon" and the like. Those kinds of comments are A) not necessary to the review; and B) need to be put in a private message if you want to give me your commendations.

Anyway, tell me what you liked or did not like. I want you to look for flaws, if you can find any.

Here is the Romaji guide for this chapter:

**Sakibou**: cat's-paw

**Ossu**: Japanese slang for "Yes sir!"

**Janken**: rock-scissors-paper game

**Geta**: traditional Japanese footwear that resembles both clogs and flip-flops

**Gama-Sennin**: Toad-Sage

**Baka**: idiot

**Youkai**: demon

**Youki**: even though it translates to "vessel," it means demonic essence or demonic chakra emanating from the demon vessel in the Naruto universe

**Doshaburi**: cloudburst; name of Naruto's fox-hound (will be highly important later on)

**Daimyo**: feudal lord (I take it that most people know this term already from World History.)


	5. Identity Crisis: Accepting the Nuke Nin

**A/N**: Well, before I kick off the next chapter, I would like to mention one important change. Here is the line-up for my trilogy (yeah, I'll be one for not opting for a time-skip—well, maybe there will be a three-month time-skip between Parts II and III).

_Birth __of __a __Legend: The Fox Druid__—the beginning (Part I) before the time-skip_

_The Fox Druid: __Are __no __Rekidaishi __(Annals of the Tempest__)__—the episode-filled time-skip, itself (Part II, but more so an intermission, if anything)_

_The Fox Druid__: __Kyuuten __no __Sansenku __(The __Three __Sky __Heralds)__—technically, Part II, but officially, Part III_

Reports from the Reviews:

So far, I cannot complain from the reviews…as well as the favorite story and favorite author alerts that I have been getting. I practically have to wipe out about ten to eighteen of aforementioned alerts every time I check my inbox.

As for the hits, I have gotten over 6000, and they're still climbing. I didn't know that I would also get a miniature fan-base.

Well, with that out of the way, let's continue with the latest installment of _Birth __of __a __Legend: __The __Fox __Druid__…_

_**Chapter **__**Five**__: __Identity __Crisis: __Accepting __the __Nuke-Nin_

"So," Kakashi mused, while Naruto and he were standing at the door of Tazuna's humble abode, "that's how Doshaburi-kun was able to speak?" The blond nodded, cradling the fuzzy vulpine in his arms, who was now asleep because of the jinchuuriki's body heat.

The story was puzzling, and yet, intriguing. He guessed that the Kyuubi wanted to look after his own kind. Foxes acted similar to any other canine; willing to look after their own pack and protect them at all costs. He mused to himself that Dosha-chan should meet Pakkun, as well as the rest of his fang-pursuit tracking team. Shaking himself from his thoughts, the one-eyed jounin turned the doorknob and walked in, with a blond and a tuft of fur in tow.

XXXXXXXXXX

The door to Tazuna's sea-cottage opened noiselessly. Tazuna, who sat at the couch reading the newspaper, Tsunami, who had just finished washing dishes, and Inari, who had just come down the stairs to see the commotion, glanced to see the two shinobi return…with a fuzzy bundle in the blond wonder's arms.

"Kawaii!" yelled a very elated Tsunami who ran over to pet Doshaburi, who had just woken up from the noise. Inari jumped from the stairs and ran over to do the same thing.

"Have Naruto and Kakashi-sensei returned yet?"

They heard a faint, feminine voice resonating from upstairs, which meant that she was making her way downstairs to see what was going on. At last, the bubble-gum-haired girl peered from the banister of the stairs. She gave a sigh of relief. "I wondered when you would get back, because Sasuke-kun had just woken up."

The Copy-Ninja gave his patented eye-smile. "Well, that's a relief. Now that everyone's up, we will be starting guard duty pretty soon. We have become a bit…lax in guarding Tazuna at the bridge for quite a while, and even though the threat that loomed over his head is gone, there is no telling who else is out to get him."

"That's no longer necessary."

Everyone in the room turned to the raspy voice of Tazuna. "You've done your job, and I couldn't have asked for anyone better for the task. But, thanks to the extra money that your sensei acquired from Gatou," at that moment, a grin etched onto Sharingan Kakashi's face behind his mask, "I was able to ask a few police officers who were glad to watch over me periodically throughout the day."

After Tazuna finished, the raven-haired prodigy shakily trudged down the stairs to meet up with his team.

"Sakura, perform a diagnostics check on Sasuke, to see if he is able-bodied," the cyclopean Copy-Ninja ordered to his pink-haired charge. With a large, beaming smile, the girl with bubble-gum-colored hair ran over to her one-sided love interest.

"Sasuke-kun, could you take off your shirt, please?" she asked with small hearts in her eyes. Before the Uchiha genius could say anything, his shirt was forced off his person. Then he felt soft, warm hands touching his bare flesh to analyze his heart and pulse rates.

"Sasuke-kun," she said in a melodic fashion. "How's your vision? Is it blurry?"

"It's fine," deadpanned the raven-haired avenger.

The 'monkey-see-monkey-do' jounin rolled his visible eye while watching what was transpiring before said eye.

'_Fan__girl__…'_ He thought and recalled a similar situation with other girls in his class. He smiled underneath his mask. _'__Once__you__'__ve__seen__one,__you__'__ve__seen__them__all__…'_

"He checks out fine, Kakashi-sensei," Sakura told her instructor.

'_**Hell **__**yeah! **__**I **__**touched **__**Sasuke-kun**__**'**__**s **__**body! **__**Take **__**that, **__**Ino-pig! **__**Shannaro!**__**'**_ Inner Sakura yelled to the apex of her voice.

"Okay," said the scarecrow jounin, once again pulling out his orange-colored, literary hentai. "We're going to be eating up and restocking today, and we'll be off tomorrow, which just so happens to coincide with the bridge-opening ceremony. Isn't that correct, Tazuna-san?" Turning to the bridge-builder, Tazuna nodded his head in agreement. Facing his charges, he continued. "Well, first things first. Naruto here picked up a stray fox cub while we were investigating Gatou's barge." The elf-eared genin peered around Tsunami and Inari, with Dosha-chan cradled in his arms. The dusty-colored fox yipped.

Seeing the ball of fur made the pink-haired girl squeal in delight. She ran over to Naruto, screaming "kawaii," just like Inari's mother, but with more gusto.

"Oh, Naruto, can I hold it, please?" Sakura asked with a bright sparkle in her green eyes, clasping her hands together.

Looking at his teammate, he wondered if she had a double-identity disorder. The first minute he usually opened his mouth in front of her, he would be eating dirt the next. Now she had been fawning over Dosha-chan. _'I guess this thing is a __chick-magnet__…__Hey, __wait__…__What am I thinking__…__?__'_

Breaking off from his musings, along with his tenant giving a perverted giggle, he said unto his teammate, "Yes, Sakura-chan. You can hold him, and his name is Doshaburi. Please don't squeeze him too hard." He handed over his vulpine pet to his brightly beaming crush.

When she looked over to her pointy-eared teammate, something felt a bit off. "Naruto, you've grown…"

"And you've changed, dobe," Sasuke broke into the conversation. The blue-eyed wonder looked at his brooding teammate. The cool-headed bastard really was too predictable, which was the natural flaw of a genius. "Spill it, and tell me why you look different."

Kakashi was the one to save his blond charge from the barrage of questions that were about to be asked. "A few days ago, when you and Naruto were fighting on the bridge, Naruto awakened his 'bloodline,' and there are still a few unanswered abilities that need to be looked over. His 'awakening' had a few…side effects; as you can tell his height is right on par with his team and his facial features look a bit like a cat…"

The tenant in the elf-eared genin's mindscape growled at being categorized to be an inferior feline, but he had to go along with the subterfuge so his host would not have to endure the strangely uncomfortable queries coming from his other teammates, especially the brooding Uchiha that was on his quest for infinite power. Kyuubi made a mental note to watch out for that kid…

'_**He could go postal any day, just like that Mada**__**ra character**__**…**_._**'**_

"Well, who knew that the dobe had a kekkei genkai?" Sasuke asked in his prideful demeanor and shrugged his shoulders. "Hn…Whatever…But still, the dobe will always remain the 'dead-last.'"

To Naruto's surprise, along with a mental sigh of relief, the Uchiha genius, the shinjin'ou of the graduated genin, actually bought the cover-story. He beamed inwardly, and he was proud of the fact that he "out-foxed" the supposed prodigy of the nine rookies.

'_But, __of __course_,_'_ Naruto thought grimly, _'__he __would __still __hound __me __down __if __I __were __to __start __training __non-stop __and l__earn __new __jutsu__…__Eh, __I__'__ll __worry __about __that __later__…'_ The blond reveled in the moment of fooling a genius, especially Sasuke-teme, but he did not want to express it outwardly, since that would blow his cleverly made ruse.

"Furthermore," Kakashi concluded. "Sakura, check on Haku to see how he's doing, okay?" With a nod, she was about to run off with Doshaburi in her arms when a blond flash appeared before her eyes.

"Wait, Sakura," Naruto whispered to her with a serious edge to his intonation. Taken aback by the sudden sense of gravity, he continued. "Follow me, but leave Dosha-chan downstairs." She complied and knelt down to allow Dosha-chan to run around on the floor. The blond and the pink-haired girl dashed upstairs.

The ocher-hued fox ran over to Kakashi and the brooding Uchiha and paused. He blinked and tilted his head to the side while looking at the two humans with his curious, gray eyes.

Sasuke looked down at the furry runt and asked, "Kakashi, why is this thing looking at us?"

Sasuke's normally narrowed eyes widened a bit when he heard a voice coming from the tawny vulpine. "I'm hungry, Kakashi-sensei. W-When's l-lunch?"

To those around that heard the tawny fox speak, save for the Copy-Ninja, they looked wide-eyed at the fur-ball in surprise.

The Uchiha survivor turned to his teacher and calmly asked, "Are you sure that fox isn't a summoned animal?" With a steady and firm "no" from the Copy-Ninja, Sasuke eyed the critter with mild interest. _'__The dobe has __a _lot _of __explaining to do__…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

With Naruto leading the way to one of the bedrooms, Sakura was wondering how come Naruto had become so serious. He paused in front of the door where he had stayed for the past several days. He turned to his green-eyed teammate and gave her his insight. "Due to my 'kekkei genkai,' I have acquired enhanced senses, including smell."

He opened the door and saw the still-unconscious Haku. Pointing at the effeminate faux-oinin in the bed, he continued. "Something is off about him. He claims to be a boy, but his scent tells me otherwise. I'm not sure, but can you check it out for me? Let me know what you find out, okay?" She nodded as he walked down the hallway to the stairwell.

Hearing Sasuke say, "Explain to me about this talking fox, dobe," her eyes widened slightly and closed the door.

Her thoughts were somehow fixed onto her blond enigma of a teammate. Sure he was a goofy, awkward and clumsy idiot, but during this mission, he seemed to have…matured slightly, as well as an added bonus of a growth spurt thanks to his 'bloodline ability.' Alongside of the fact that the blond-haired puzzle could have hearing, sight and smell similar to those of an Inuzuka clan member, he had a fox-hound; a canine just like Kiba, their former classmate, but could speak on its own. She would have to ask him about that later. That or try to pry the information that Sasuke-kun had gotten from the knuckleheaded mystery that was Uzumaki Naruto. Knowing the blond's secretive demeanor, Sasuke-kun would be trying to pry the data from Naruto like drawing water from a stone. It just was _not_ going to happen…

Her thoughts had then turned to the effeminate figure in the bed. The green-eyed bookworm went to work by analyzing Haku's vitals. They read normal, from resting pulse rate to heartbeat rate.

It was time for the faux-oinin to have 'his' body checked for anything broken. When Sakura was feeling for any broken ribs, her hands paused on a soft lump on Haku's right side underneath bandages that had not been placed by any of her teammates. Fearing that it may be abnormal swelling of the lungs, she carefully lifted up the estranged figure and began to undo the bandages around the chest region.

Luckily, there had been no swelling, but to the former Ninja Academy wiz-kid's surprise, two round, fleshy orbs expanded from the chest of the unconscious shinobi.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Meanwhile…)

Tazuna was out on the bridge, checking on the last-minute fixings, and Tsunami and her son were out on the pier, watching some of the boats sailing by.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Sea Cottage, downstairs)

"Well, he learned how to speak before I even met him, teme," said the blond mystery for the umpteenth time in the last few minutes.

"That's bullshit, dobe, and you know it," retorted the Uchiha genius. "Animals of the wild do _not_ know how to speak…let alone, speak human."

"Well, it looks like that you don't know _everything_ that the world contains, ne, Sasuke-teme?" rebutted the elf-eared genin. Sasuke was about to waylay into the numbskull that was his teammate but was interrupted by the arrival of his pink-haired fan girl…er, teammate.

"Naruto," Sakura started, grabbing the elf-eared genin's attention, "you were right about your instincts. Haku is, in fact…a girl. Her breasts were…bounded." She cringed at the mental pain of having one of the female's most sensitive organs held together by tightly woven wrappings.

"Say what?" Naruto yelled. "I knew something didn't add up…but how come she was trying to say that she was a boy from the start?" Asking no one in particular, his raven-haired rival spoke up from hearing the news.

"To hell if I know," Sasuke deadpanned. Suddenly, he heard the elf-eared loser snicker under his breath. "What is it now, dobe?"

"Ha-ha," Naruto laughed. He wiped a tear from his cerulean orbs with slit pupils. "You had your ass handed to you by a girl…"

Both Naruto and Sasuke paused from their conversation when they felt a huge spike of murderous intent emanating from behind them. They turned to look at a raging Sakura with fire in her eyes and muscles tensed. She appeared a bit bigger, anime-style, with her upper body blown up to gargantuan proportions.

"What…did…you…say…Naruto…?" Sakura asked between animalistic growls and snarls.

Not wanting to add fuel to the fire, he already knew when and when _not_ to push the buttons of his pink-haired, dual-persona crush. He calmly stated, "Nothing, Sakura-chan. I meant nothing by it." This brought down the ki to a comfortable level; however, Sakura still bopped him on the side of the head, leaving a rather large lump.

"Well," Sasuke started. "_How_ did you beat her?"

The question brought Naruto's musing to a grinding halt and sweat started to pool beneath his face and threatened to fall.

Immediately remembering the faux-story, he answered, "That was when my 'bloodline' kicked in." He calmed down and continued. "I had my chakra coils refilled and my speed and stamina peaked. She tried to run away, but I caught her by the arm and gave her one swift punch to the face, knocking her out cold. Then the power retreated and I felt exhausted. I carried both you and Haku over to Sakura-chan, where I collapsed from fatigue."

The raven-haired teenager slightly widened his eyes. There was absolutely no way for a ninja—a genin, at that—to refill his or her chakra coils in a last-ditch effort, save for the Eight Inner Gates, which had just been crackpot theory that he had read in a local magazine. He mused to himself that he could take that power from the dobe and use it to defeat his brother, Itachi. "Teach me, then." He swallowed his pride before he had even asked the question.

"Sorry, Sasuke, but no can do," Naruto said, deflating the black-eyed Uchiha's hope in one fell swoop. "It's a 'kekkei genkai,' and it can never be taught…or_copied_." He placed emphasis on the last word, seeing that the Uchiha, to him, were a bunch of copy-cat ninja with crazy-colored eyes that could read people's movements. However, he had slight respect to the former Konoha Police Corps, who helped him out with being harassed by some of the villagers, before they were wiped out.

"Well," Sakura interrupted, "her vitals read out fine, but she still has a slight concussion from the blow to her head. I think that it's about time that we should wake her up. Kakashi-sensei," she turned toward her jounin-sensei, who was nose-deep in his book, on the couch, with Doshaburi nestled on the green-patterned rug beneath his feet, "do you, by any chance, have any smelling-salts that I can use to wake up Haku?"

Without looking up, Sharingan Kakashi lazily pointed over to his backpack. "They're in the third pocket, near the straps, Sakura." She walked over and rummaged through the Copy-Ninja's personal things to find a scroll. She opened it slightly and rubbed her fingers on a bit of the ink, which caused the awakening aids to pop out of the scroll with a puff of smoke.

"Well, before you wake…_her_ up," Kakashi said, standing up, carefully avoiding the sleeping Doshaburi on the green rug, who was full from the scraps given to him a while earlier. "I suggest that we all go in, just in case she does decide to attack in defense." In a single-file line, Kakashi, Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto walked up the stairs and into the room of the soon-to-be-awakened nuke-nin.

XXXXXXXXXX

Smelling a pungent aroma that was wafting in front of her nostrils, Haku's face winced slightly as her face moved away from the horrible stench. She sensed several chakra signatures and fluttered open her eyes. Her brown eyes met with one hazel, two emerald, two black and two crystal-blue ones with slit pupils.

Her sleepy eyes shot open in fear and she cowered back to the head of the bedpost. To the faux-oinin, it felt reminiscent from the time that her father and his mob had cornered her and eyed her with disdain before she inadvertently activated her bloodline ability to defend herself from certain demise.

Fortunately, the deadened, heavy silence was pierced through like a knife through thick fabric, but the words emanated from the raven-haired warrior were as cold as the ice-mirrors that she could form.

"All right…Talk, woman…"

'_Have they discovered my secret__…__?__'_ Haku frantically thought. She was defensively nervous when she said, "I-I told you already…I'm a _boy_."

Looking on in mild wonder at the young kunoichi, Sakura lightened the atmosphere when she calmly asked, "Then how come your chest was bounded, Haku-san? We know that you're a girl, so there's no point in hiding it." She gave the confused ninja a sincere smile. Sakura wished that she could soar to that great a length to be strong.

Haku, on the other hand, had her mouth slightly agape, flabbergasted that her secret was revealed. Now she felt even more weak and pitiful and feared for what they were about to do to her. She felt helpless and unable to protect herself.

"Unfortunately, Haku-san," Kakashi said with his book placed at his side with his finger as a placeholder, "Zabuza is dead, and we were wondering what we should do with you…either to have you sent back to your home in Kiri or…"

"Wait."

The jounin and the others in the room looked to see that the elf-eared genin spoke up. "Please, let me talk with her one on one…in privacy…alone. Look at her…she's flat-out terrified from seeing the four of us loom over her like that. If you were in her position, then wouldn't you feel the same way?"

The scarecrow Copy-Ninja, the green-eyed bookworm and the raven-haired Uchiha thought for a moment. They could not help feeling as if the hyperactive knucklehead was right. Each one gave a swift nod and before filing out to go downstairs to the living room, Naruto called to Kakashi-sensei, "Hey sensei, could you…?"

"I'm on it, Naruto…" Looking at his two confused charges, he ordered them to meet him downstairs. They unwillingly complied, wondering what was it that they were about to say. Flashing through a few hand seals, the Copy-Ninja called out, "**Musei ****Shouheki ****no ****Jutsu**!"

The room was filled with noiseless silence as Kakashi left the room and shut the door, leaving the elf-eared whisker-marks and the ice-wielding kunoichi to discuss amongst themselves.

The silence was a bit uncomfortable as Haku slightly squirmed under the slit pupils of the standing fox-boy before he asked, "Why do you hide what you truly are, Haku?"

"…" Silence. The dark-haired young lady looked down at the white sheets and her hands clung onto them.

"Answer me, Haku. Why did you hide your true identity?" His voice, albeit slightly deeper, was smooth and soft as silk, which was very soothing to the black-haired ice-user.

"…" Silence consumed the bedroom. Tears threatened to fall from her rich-brown eyes as her icy wall began to crack.

"Look at me, Haku." His voice was nothing more than a relaxing whisper. "Why do you hide from the world? Hide from yourself? Why do you lie to yourself?"

Water droplets pooled onto the sheets. Haku's tears lined her cream-colored cheeks as she looked up at the eyes of the maelstrom. It was then that her cold wall of emotionless being shattered from the torrent of questions, repeated and reformed, from the elf-eared fox-boy. "It's because I'm weak and pathetic. If I thought to myself that I was a boy, then I would become strong. I also did it to hide who I truly had been…You see I was hated for what was in my blood when I grew up…"

Naruto was taken slightly aback by her response and sat beside her, with his blue orbs looking on with intense interest. _'__She__'__s__…__just__like__me__…'_

With tears in her eyes, Haku continued. "I was born to a farming couple in a village not too far from here. I was raised with love and care for the first eight years of my life, until that day…" More of the saline fluid from her tear-ducts emerged and cascaded down her face, forming a new trail.

She lowered her head, with her dark tresses obscuring her face from the blond's view, as she continued. "I was playing in the snow with my mother watching over me. With innocent curiosity, I played with a puddle of melted snow. I was able to pick up and contort the water at will. My mother, who was looking onward, scolded me to never do that again and slapped me on the cheek with brute force.

"It was not until later that I had found out that, before I was born, there was a civil war that had erupted within the Land of Water. It had been some of the villagers against those who possessed a kekkei genkai…people like me." Naruto placed a hand on her back and rubbed it in a vain attempt to squelch her running tears that continued to pool on the white bed sheet.

"Before I was brought into this world, the in-fighting was quelled, but there were still unspoken tensions between 'normal' and 'bloodline.' Those who possessed the hidden trait blended in with the crowd, never to use their inherited power again…"

She looked up at the ceiling with nostalgia etched onto her face. "That time, six years ago, my father found out that my mother carried the bloodline trait that I possessed. He, along with a group of villagers that mobbed together, killed my mother in cold blood, just due to the fact of what she carried _within_ her blood."

She paused to wipe her eyes and continued with a look of subtle hatred directed at no one. "Then, he tried to come for me and cornered me in a wooden shed. They tried to kill me, but my kekkei genkai unconsciously activated and slit the throats of everyone that had banded together to kill me, with my father included."

Her cold, indifferent face returned as she turned to the whisker-marks. "After that incident, I wandered around, scrounging for a meager existence. I kept my true gender a secret, because I wouldn't have known what would have happened to me while in Water Country's streets." Naruto had then grimaced. He had a vague notion, but did not know exactly to what she referred. "I was down on my luck until I met Zabuza-san on a cold winter's day. It was then that I found my true purpose…to serve as a tool for one's own bidding." From a hidden pocket in her battle kimono, she pulled out a senbon needle and shoved it into the blond's available hand. "I have outlived my usefulness, for my wielder is no more, and I want you to…kill me, Naruto-kun. I am not worthy to live anymore."

He paused rubbing her back and looked at the sharp weapon that was thrust into the palm of his hand. It gleamed, desiring to end someone's life then and there.

He looked away from Haku and at the curtained window. Even though Haku did not see it, he lightly shook his head and calmly said, "I refuse…I won't do it…I can't do it…"

Suddenly, he felt the metal fiber gone from his hand and looked to see Haku place the senbon away from her heart, with her eyes shut. His eyes widened tremendously when, in a slow motion, the senbon was on its way to make contact with her chest cavity. However, the movement was faster than the normal eye can track.

Haku felt in heavenly bliss as the senbon was about to end her life…but she felt a firm hand grip her two hands that prolonged her attempted suicide. Her brown eyes opened and transfixed onto blond locks in confusion and disbelief.

"I won't let you take your own life, either," the elf-eared genin resolutely spoke, with his head down while holding both of her hands with a set of his own.

"You and I are a lot alike." His voice wavered a bit. The golden-haired boy was debating whether or not she would take such a highly kept secret of his village. It was kind of strange for the fox-boy to trust a complete stranger who understands him more so than his teammates could ever try.

'_She needs to hear this__…__otherwise; __I __won__'__t be able to convince her__…__Forgive __me, fox__, __for __having another one to bear my burden__…'_

"**Go ahead and tell he****r, ****Naruto**," the King of Demons said within the fox-boy's mind. "**She needs to hear this, ****and maybe that ought to knock some sense into the poor child**."

"We both suffer from what we carry, Haku," Naruto continued as he looked into her confused, rich-brown eyes. "Remember what you felt before I knocked you out?" With a shocking nod, he pressed onward. "Well, you see…unbeknownst to me for the first twelve years of my life, I was hated for just being born. Some of the commoners in my village looked at me with hate-filled looks, like I was the local neighborhood pariah." He paused as he expressed a saddened smile. "It was not until a while before I came here that I had found out from a traitor to the village that I was a demon. As I recollect on it, it made perfect sense, from the disgusted looks to the cold gazes of apathy. But, on the other hand, it didn't make much sense, since the villagers see me as a reminder of the past, which was the demon sealed inside of me. That was something far beyond my control. I'm doing my home a favor, by the Yondaime, to hold back the demon from unleashing mere anarchy upon the village.

"And when I met my team, sure, we didn't get along at first, but we managed to look past our differences, and they accepted me. Unfortunately, they know nothing of the beast locked away in a seal engraved around my stomach, and I hope that remains that way…for now. In fact, none of the children of my age group know. They were told that the Kyuubi died by the hands of the Yondaime Hokage. The attitudes from the adults from the Kyuubi attack, however, seeped into some of the kids in my generation and they shun me as equally, if not, worse than the adults."

Haku's eyes threatened to bulge out in awe and disbelief. She had only thought that the bijuu were beasts of legend, but now, at this very moment, she was talking with a jinchuuriki…a demon container…a power of human sacrifice…a martyr for the sake of the security of their hidden village, and somehow, he managed to keep sane this entire time.

His eyes watered a bit before he finished up. "It was by chance that you are still alive. I'm glad that you are, for we both don't have to suffer, anymore. You and I are the same, and we can still be friends, even though you and I have fought with clashing beliefs."

He smiled a bit before adding, "And just because you're a girl doesn't mean that you're weak. I mean, c'mon, you practically held off both Sasuke and me at the same time…and gave us a solid ass-whooping at that." He paused and stroked his chin. "Well…maybe Sasuke, but you gave me a run for my money, anyway." Haku giggled from his odd sense of humor as he chuckled as well. "That should already measure your capability as a kunoichi…Haku-chan…" Naruto gave her a warm, genuine smile.

Haku looked into the eyes of the blue-eyed jinchuuriki with shock and a bit of embarrassment. Never has anyone, aside from her late parents, given her an affectionate honorific of familiarity. An indiscernible shade of pink coloring lined her cheeks.

On instinct, she did the unthinkable. She unashamedly gave the fox-boy a warm hug, with a few new tears of joy and understanding that fell from her closed eyes. Feeling her soft orbs on his chest, Naruto blushed a bit, returned the hug immediately and mentally kicked himself from the perverted thoughts that were creeping into his mind. _'__Damn it, where the hell did that come from__…__?__'_

XXXXXXXXXX

The thoughts of the blond did not go by unnoticed by the spirit-fox. With his photographic memory, he recorded said images and stashed them away for safekeeping.

'_**Consider it blackmail, kid, if you tr**__**y **_**anything **_**to **__**piss **__**me **__**off**__**…'**_ He chuckled to himself. _**'**__**Hin-hin-hin**__**…**__**That or I should play matchmaker**__**, seeing that the **__**pink-haired banshee won't treat him **__**properly**__**…**__**or give him the time of **__**day.**__**'**_

He displayed his foxy grin as he began to clean his fur.

XXXXXXXXXX

"I'm sure that Konoha will accept you in open arms, like I did, but finding you a place will be kind of a problem," said the blue-eyed wonder, breaking the hug as he held onto her soft arms. "That is, if you are willing to come along with us. It won't hurt to have our party grow by one more."

"One more…?" she asked with a raised eyebrow, wiping away some tears.

"Yeah, Kakashi-sensei and I saw a stray fox cub onboard Gatou's impounded ship and I gave chase to him. He bumped into me, became familiar with one another and I called him Doshaburi. And with Kyuubi-sama's help, he can now speak like a human." That elicited a peculiar look from Haku to Naruto, almost as if he grew another head on his shoulder.

"Well, that's beside the point. We need to get you something to eat, since you've been out for many days." As if on cue, Haku's belly lurched in ravenous hunger. Both had looked down at the gurgling stomach as her blush deepened from pink to an instantaneous dark-crimson. Naruto, on the other hand, laughed, and almost immediately, his stomach did the same thing. The tide turned; the ice-mistress was now laughing while the elf-eared genin held down his head in embarrassment, with a blush lining his cheeks.

He rebounded and gave a foxy grin. "C'mon, Haku-chan, let's go get something to eat. I'm starving." Standing up, Naruto offered his hand to the ice-princess as she took it and stood up. Since she felt a bit weak in the knees, Naruto aided as her crutch to walk down the stairs to his awaiting teammates, wondering what was the pointy-eared enigma doing…alone…with a girl…in the bedroom…

Their thoughts were going wild and unimaginable…

XXXXXXXXXX

Kakashi perversely chuckled to himself while reading his book of smut. _'__He may be growing up a bit too fast__…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Sakura was stricken with horror. _'__He wouldn't take advantage of a girl__…__Well, __would __he__…__?__'_

'_**Damn **__**it! **__**Why **__**won**__**'**__**t **__**Sasuke-kun **__**do **_**that **_**with **__**me**__**…**__**! **__**Shannaro!**__**' **_Inner Sakura screeched.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sasuke maintained his indifferent facial expression, but was jealously fuming on the inside.

'_I want details, dobe__…'_

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Well, there you have it. That's another one down. Please tell me what you think. Was it short? Was it too brief of an encounter? Was there anything out of place? I'm dying to know.

The reviews for me stand as is…Please try to leave something other than two or three words. That means any of the following:

"I enjoyed it."

"I like it. Please update soon."

"Interesting."

The list can go on and on and on…

As for the descriptions of characters, they are called 'epithets,' descriptive words or phrases accompanying or occurring in place of the names of people or things. I'm sure that most of you are familiar with _The__Odyssey_ or _The__Aeneid_. You have seen them there, as well as with most _epic_ tales. This implies that this story will be epic length in nature. I also decided to further incorporate them because using their names constantly would be a bit dull. Of course, that is my own opinion.

_Jikai__… __(Next __time__…__) __on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Bridges of Hope and Family Ties_

_Naruto: __All __right, __let__'__s __check __to __see __what __are __in __the __scrolls__…_

**Romaji/Jutsu G****uide:**

**Kawaii**: cute

**Dobe**: idiot; Sasuke's doting term for Naruto

**Teme**: slighted form of you; Naruto's doting term for Sasuke

**Kekkei ****genkai**: bloodline limit

**Shinjin****'****ou**: "rookie-of-the-year"

**Musei ****Shouheki ****no ****Jutsu**: Silent Barrier Technique (alternative name can be Noiseless Barrier Technique); D-rank supplementary fuuinjutsu; user creates a noise-free zone to disclose important information or vital secrets (created a name for it)

**Bijuu**: tailed beasts


	6. Bridges of Hope and Family Ties

**A/N**: Well, I'm here and back again. I am personally glad that I didn't end my chapters on cliffhangers. Frankly, that would get everyone riled up at me for not finishing through with it, but do expect cliffhangers later on in this fic.

Word from the Reviews:

It's official…I hate anonymous reviews…but nonetheless…

Things are looking good…Keep them coming. I like answering questions for the story. And I take back what I said in the first chapter. I might reveal _some_ spoilers, but I will not give you the full-blown story.

I will also give a profile on Haku at the end of this chapter…that is, if I don't include it within the story.

Well, let's get the show on the road, shall we?

Caution: Before proceeding onward, there will be some slight suggestive themes here (in short, innuendo, just like the end of the last chapter).

_**Chapter Six**__: Bridges of Hope and Family Ties_

As the dark-haired young lady and blond-haired genin descended down the stairs to the living room, Naruto asked his new friend with a hint of worry in his voice, "How're you feeling, Haku-chan? Do you think that you can stand on your own again?"

The senbon-wielding ice-mistress smiled at the blond jinchuuriki while gripping his left shoulder with her left arm and rested her head against his right one. She replied, "Yes, I will be okay in due time, Naruto-kun. My legs are still kind of weak though. But thank you for your concern, and thanks to you, I feel great. In fact, I feel _even better_ than before." She closed her eyes and giggled girlishly. He smiled inwardly as they slowly went down the stair-steps while he held onto the right side of her hip. To the rest of his team that was listening and watching, they could have sworn that they were a couple.

Seeing the peculiar looks, Naruto started, "Hey, guys…" but was soon stopped dead in his tracks.

"Spill it, dobe. I want details." Sasuke interrupted and went in for the kill. His peculiar eyes glared at the blond-headed enigma. He felt as if his masculine pride was being shot by the blond dobe. Not only did he have a replenishment "bloodline," but he also had a kunoichi by his side that did not scream like a fangirl. Uchiha Sasuke would _never _be upstaged by anyone, especially the "dead-last." _'How is it that _I _get the noisy ones…?'_

With a defeated and quizzical look, the elf-eared whisker-marks responded, "What…?"

"What did you two _do_ up there?" the raven-haired Uchiha asked impatiently, pointing past them. He wanted to know as to how the blond idiot accomplished such a feat. He was hell-bent on knowing what happened upstairs for the past hour.

The whisker-marks narrowed his cerulean eyes at the dark-haired avenger, feeling as if he was being reeled into the uncomfortable territory of innuendo. "That's none of your business, Sasuke. It pertained to…_personal_ matters."

"Is it, now…?" Sasuke cracked his knuckles and was about to move forward, only to be stopped by the pink-headed fangirl…er, teammate.

Holding her hand to halt the Uchiha-force, Sakura spoke up. "Listen…Naruto…You two…didn't…um…" She poked her fingers together, which was oddly reminiscent to a certain indigo-haired Hyuuga heiress. "You two…um…didn't…_do_ anything up there in the bedroom, right?" She felt very awkward as to pry into the subject of relations between members of the opposite sex. Inner Sakura, however, had a different opinion, for she was giving out cat-calls while swearing as bad as a certain, foul-mouthed, red-haired kunoichi of Otogakure.

Finally catching on, both Haku and Naruto's faces took on the hue of a ripened red apple. In furious defense, the elf-eared genin roared, while holding up a clenched fist and a cartoon vein that lined the side of his temple. "_Nothing happened! What the hell do think I am!? Some kind of womanizing pervert!?"_

"Yes," flatly stated the inwardly-envious dark-haired avenger, "because of that perverted **Oiroke no Jutsu**…"

"_I swear, bastard,_" Naruto fumed, with cartoon smoke whistling out of his ears. "_Nothing happened between us! We just talked for a while before we decided to come down and get something to eat, since we're hungry! That's all!_"

'_Could've been eating something else…'_ Sasuke sourly thought.

"Well, what did you talk about?" Another question was fired away by the meddlesome Uchiha.

To Haku's comforting look, Naruto eased a bit from his rising temper. "Like I said, _Sasuke_, we were discussing _very important_ matters that do not _pertain_ to a kid with the hairstyle of a _duck's ass_." Kakashi, hearing what his elf-eared charge had said, instinctually glanced behind Sasuke's head and smirked lightly on account of Naruto's clever comeback.

Sasuke's face was not shaded in red; however, he narrowed his eyes and his voice had taken on an undertone of subtle anger. "Watch what you say, dobe, or you may just be pushing daisies in the next minute."

"All right, that's enough," the Copy-Ninja impeded the rising conflict between the two pre-teens.

"Ano," Haku spoke up. "If you wouldn't mind Kakashi-san, I would be honored to travel back to Konoha with you. Please forgive me for my past transgressions." She removed herself from the blond's hold and curtly bowed before Sharingan Kakashi.

"Well, I'm not sure if that is at all possible…" Kakashi mumbled for a minute, but then remembered what he had said on the bridge. "Ah…since you have a kekkei genkai Haku-san, you stand as a bargaining chip between Kiri and Konoha. However, since you have a powerful bloodline limit, Konoha will be glad to hold onto you…unfortunately, by the laws of the clan heads, those that are the last of their bloodlines…uh…" He rubbed the back of his head and gave his patented eye-smile. "They have…to-be-labeled-as-breeding-material." The scarecrow jounin incoherently rushed out the last words.

"Come again, Kakashi-san?" Haku didn't catch the words as the jounin trailed off, but Naruto filled in the cracks for her.

"He said that since you are the last carrier of a beneficial bloodline limit, you can either be sold back to Kiri for ransom and do whatever they want with you or be taken back to Konoha and act as…breeding fodder." The elf-eared whisker-marks shuddered at having to see the poor young lady subject to being used like a tool…again. Haku was stunned with eyes slightly widened as she nervously gulped. Naruto continued. "But luckily, I have ties with Sandaime-jiisan, so I can try to pull some strings so that doesn't happen…at least, not while I'm around, and that's a promise." He gave her an honest smile to put the ice-using kunoichi at ease.

"Now that the matter-at-hand is out of the way," Kakashi remarked. "We need to start packing our things, since we head out first thing in the morning. It's only five o'clock, so you have ample time to check for broken gear and the like. Naruto, we have matters to discuss. Sasuke, continue with your training." The raven-haired genius snorted in compliance and walked out the door to go to the forest. "Sakura, would you mind helping Tsunami-san prepare for supper?" The green-eyed bookworm scowled at the task, but nodded accordingly and trudged off. "Haku, I will have you watch over Sasuke's training and help him out when necessary…that is, if he ever wants any." The brown-eyed girl curtly bowed again. "Now, now…there's no need for formalities, little lady." The ice-user looked up and nodded. She continued out the door, leaving the scarecrow jounin and the fox-boy at the base of the stairs. "As for the two of us, we'll be looking at the scrolls, and we'll cross-check them when we're on the boat going home."

"Yoshi! Now it's time to look at those scrolls!" He grinned in delight before Kakashi interrupted his musings by putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't be so hasty, Naruto," the one-eyed scarecrow said. "I will warn you ahead of time that some scrolls can be designed as booby traps. You may open one in the first moment and wind up dead the next…Or worse…" Kakashi gave a dark, ghoul-eyed look at Naruto which made him cringe in distress. "You may have your soul extracted by a genjutsu…"

"H-Hai, Kakashi-sensei…" Naruto managed to mutter with bulging eyes. _'Man, that look is creepy…I wonder if any member of the ANBU knows that as well…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Hidden Leaf Forest, undisclosed location)

Just as a tiger-masked ANBU agent, who was on active surveillance duty, finished constructing a small wooden cottage from using his wood-element chakra (to camp for the night in the woods), a tickle hit his nose, which caused him to promptly sneeze. Unfortunately, nasal material lined the nose region on the inside of the mask. Now he had to clean his mask for the third time this week. _'Not again…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Sea Cottage, upstairs)

"Okay, Dosha-chan," the fox-boy grinned. "Now, it's time to put our noses to good use, and to see if we can smell a trap in this set of scrolls."

"O-Okay," replied the dust-colored fox. Pawing at one of the scrolls laying next to him, he gave his nose a small workout. Luckily, he could not sense anything misleading with regards to the scroll. "Th-this scroll checks out f-fine, Naruto."

The elf-eared whisker-marks picked up and used his sense of smell to detect anything wrong as well. Noticing the Hidden Grass symbol on the parchment, he paused. _'I thought that these scrolls came from Shio…Why are there scrolls from far and wide?'_

To their fortune, the scroll checked out fine. Rubbing at the seal with a bit of friction, the piece of parchment popped open. The first few words of the scroll caught his wayward eyes. _Haruno Clan Mori no Magen…by the Kusagakure no Shitan Toge, Haruno Asami…_

"Well, what'd ya know?" he asked to himself. "It looks like that Sakura-chan has family in Kusa…And the scroll looks as if it was freshly done not too long ago, maybe stemming back to about fifteen years or so prior."

As he rolled down the scroll, he came across two sealing circles below the name, alongside one another. Around the intricate kanji-rings, there appeared to be two shadow-images within each one. The dark image on the left looked like a miniature shuriken, whereas the image on the right side looked similar to a Fuuma shuriken but had no grip in the middle. He looked down at the katakana for "boomerang" underneath the image.

'_Just exactly what the hell kind of weapon is a…_boomerang_…?'_ He mentally noted, but was lucky enough to have the answer in the back of his head from his trickster tenant.

'**A boomerang is a projectile that is thrown to travel long distances to harmlessly knock out prey. I've seen the Shodai Hokage use such a tool that he created out of wood by himself. I was impressed by the aerodynamics of such a simple hunting implement. The weird thing about it, however, is that when thrown, it comes back to whoever had thrown it.'**

'_Thanks for the insight, Kyuubi-sama.'_ He continued to scroll down the elongated parchment and noticed a particular theme with the array of genjutsu theory inscribed on it. _'These are all _flower-based _genjutsu…'_ He was thoroughly amused. _'And since Sakura-chan has a knack for genjutsu, she would enjoy this.'_ He stashed the scroll to the side and examined another one. He pulled, once again, a Haruno scroll, but this time, it had the Hidden Mist insignia sealed at the opening. With a minor amount of friction, the manuscript opened itself. _'Now, let's see the differences…'_ He stopped dead in his tracks of vision and thought.

_Warning,_ the scroll's text started. _This Haruno hijutsu scroll contains high-level techniques for those of the __**Naitekiiyoku **__kekkei genkai…Indications of said kekkei genkai include a split personality of the mind and irregular emotional tendencies…_

'_What the…?'_ Naruto was now somewhat flabbergasted. _'Sakura-chan has a kekkei genkai? Well, I guess _that_ explains why her personality does a one-eighty most of the time. To think that it was mood-swings…'_ He lightly chuckled to himself before he looked at the progenitor of the Kiri Haruno-clan hijutsu scroll. _'Haruno Ume, Kirigakure no Kage no Kisaki…That nickname sounds like that the woman was a reckoned force amongst those of Kiri…'_

He put the scroll on his right side where the Kusa scroll had been placed. While in his rummaging escapades, Doshaburi discovered a basic Fuuton ninjutsu scroll. "N-Naruto? I found a Fuuton scroll that w-we c-can use…"

"Great! Thanks, Dosha-chan," Naruto remarked as his pet placed the scroll next to the other two Haruno clan scrolls. Soon afterward, the fox-boy placed a beginners' Suiton ninjutsu scroll right next to the others. He paused when an explosion was heard. Thinking that it wasn't anything out of the usual (say, dynamite at the bridge), he continued to rummage through the new material.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Sea Cottage, upstairs, next door)

Copy-Ninja Kakashi and his head nin-ken, Pakkun, fumbled through his set of scrolls. As the fates would have it, he was stuck with the vast majority of the booby-trapped scrolls, which caused Pakkun to puff away back to the summoned animal realm. A watershed of luck occurred when the Cyclopean jounin stumbled upon the Sakibou clan ninja scrolls. The elite jounin hit pay-dirt as he also found scrolls containing some useful, high-grade Katon and Raiton ninjutsu.

'_I guess that I can hold onto these for the time being, and then I'll teach them to Sasuke. His elemental alignment is obviously fire, since he stems from the Uchiha clan. I can teach him some lightning-based techniques to shock those that have the water-affinities and run a current through those pesky earth-aficionados…'_ Elite Jounin of the Hidden Leaf, Hatake Kakashi, had an insurmountable amount of hatred and disdain toward ninja of Iwagakure. It was they who had killed his former teammate, Uchiha Obito, during the Third Great Ninja War. However, he concluded that there was nothing gained from taking revenge on actions that existed in the past, but he still held that grudge. And the same feeling had been etched in the thoughts of the Konoha shinobi as well, since Iwa and Konoha have been, and always will be, on shaky ground and rocky terms.

'_Anyway,'_ Kakashi's mind wandered on another topic at hand. _'I haven't heard any explosions at all from next door. I wonder if he stumbled upon a jackpot of sorts…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

The blond-haired genin had most of the scrolls that he had glanced over packed into an empty scroll at his disposal. As if he were blessed and kissed by Lady Luck, they consisted of Doton, Suiton and Fuuton-class ninjutsu, and he couldn't wait to understand the theory behind it, even though that it would be a grueling task. But still, Uzumaki Naruto had been one that will forever endure through hard work and dedication, accepting any challenges and conquer them, no matter how impossible they were. To him, there was not anything possible if you could set your mind to it.

He also wanted to learn the techniques so he could protect his precious people or those that come to harm. That was his new nin-dou, his new "ninja way." And he was going to stick by it to the very end, with demon fox and vulpine companion in tow.

Hearing a couple of explosions from next door (_'Kakashi-sensei's luck may be a bit sour,' _Naruto thought), he packed away most of the scrolls, bar two, in which one seemed to exude a strange force from within it. His slit eyes slightly widened when he noticed the spiral-shaped insignia that was identical to the emblem on his former "kill-me-orange" jumpsuit. He reached over and tried to rub the scroll with friction, but it would not give way. He tried many times, but it was not opening. _'Damn it…what am I doing wrong?"_

'**Sometimes, kit,'** Kyuubi announced within his mind, noticing the kit's frustration. **'Some seals require a sacrifice of blood in order for them to be opened. Some blood seals, unfortunately, react to a family or clan member's blood. Try that.'**

Mentally kicking himself for failing to realize it earlier, the blue-eyed wonder bit down on his thumb and rubbed his blood from the open wound onto the scroll. Immediately, the barrier around the parchment became undone and the piece of paper unraveled. The faded text indicated that it was very old. As he was glancing he noticed that some of the characters were faded at the top and at the bottom, but his eyes were noticing the last name "Uzumaki" appear many different times. Along with the names, there were lines of ink that ran in-between some names and branched off others. Much to the blond's dismay, he could not see the newer names, for they were somehow washed out in transit.

'_Wait a minute…This is a genealogy scroll of the Uzumaki clan! My family tree…'_ It was very detailed, albeit faded in some portions. While he was glancing at the names, he came to a smudged set of characters near the top of the scroll. _'Sen…ju…Senju…What on earth is Senju?'_ His eyebrows arched up in befuddlement.

Doshaburi was wondering about the puzzled look on his companion's face. He tilted his head in a cute, vulpine manner. "A-Ano…Naruto? What's the m-matter?"

"Huh?" he clicked out of his reverie as he looked at his fuzzy cloudburst and answered, "Oh, everything's fine. I'm just trying to figure out something, that's all."

"Oh…" Doshaburi's tail swished as he turned and walked over to a corner, which had been very inviting to him. Tucking in the corner, the little ocher-hued fox cub drifted into dreamland.

"That's all he does…just eats and sleeps, but he does bring good company," Naruto mused to himself, chortling a bit. He put away the genealogy scroll and picked up a convenient, ragtag scroll…for _foxes and other canines_…

'_How the hell did this unnamed scroll get in here? Oh well…'_ He opened the scroll and looked at a few nin-ken-based ninjutsu. _'This is designed to use the techniques without hands…Dosha-chan, you are going to be one lucky fox…'_ Naruto looked at the first supplementary nin-ken hijutsu…** Nin-ken no Hijutsu: Tama Senkou**.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Wooded Area)

'_I must get stronger. I must defeat my brother. I will not succumb to death until I face him!'_ Sasuke mentally chanted those words, along with a few variations, while he was kicking a tree stump that was turned into a taijutsu practice post. He executed a couple of shaky roundhouse kicks and a few perfect punches.

He groaned inwardly. _'This is _not_ how it's supposed to be…I _will_ be the best!'_ His macho attitude continued to plague his now-sloppy punches and wimpy kicks. If he had been aware of the situation, he would know that he was tiring out, but his mind tricked him to think differently.

Finally, the physical fatigue registered into his brain as he unceremoniously fell on his backside, panting heavily.

Haku looked onward and wondered how the dark-haired warrior could push himself to those extremes for the past two hours…non-stop…without any of her input from what he aptly termed "the peanut gallery." She sighed and felt sympathy for the Uchiha avenger. _'I think that he has reached an impasse in his training methods…If he wasn't so prideful, then maybe he could get stronger by learning from others…'_

She quietly left to gather some nearby herbs to create some more medicine for the ninja squad.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Sea Cottage, kitchen)

"I think that the soup is just about ready, don't you think so Sakura?" The midnight-blue-haired woman asked unto her pink-haired helper.

Taste-testing the small bowl of experimental broth, her taste buds soared into heaven and she beamed with joy. "This tastes…great!"

Tsunami smiled at her little apprentice-chef. "…And I couldn't have done it without you, Sakura." She then gave her a wink.

"Thank you, Tsunami-san," remarked the pink-haired kunoichi with a cheerful smile. _**'All right! I kick ass in cooking! I wish Sasuke-kun would compliment me on it…Shannaro!'**_ Inner Sakura yelled within the pink-haired kunoichi's mindscape.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Sea Cottage, Dining Room, 8 pm)

It was now dinnertime and the entire crew sat at the table in front of a full buffet of assorted cuisine, from rice balls to miso soup.

"Itadakimasu" was chorused by all who had seated. Sasuke and Naruto raced to see who finished their meal in the quickest time…again. Luckily, the blond wonder held down his food while the proud Uchiha dashed to the bathroom to regurgitate. Unofficially, Naruto won and decided to not rub it in the teme's face. Naruto was a bottomless pit when it came to food; Sasuke had his limits, just like his pre-dinner taijutsu practice.

The little fox-hound pitter-pattered down the stairs, following his nose to the food. His gray eyes were transfixed onto a rice ball and a piece of cod on Sakura's plate as his ears stood on end. He dashed down the stairs in a furry blur and ran up to Sakura, giving her a trademark "puppy" look.

Around the table, Inari, Tsunami, Tazuna, Sasuke, Naruto and Kakashi paused from their meals and looked at what was about to happen. Haku noticed the sudden pause and looked as well.

Save for Haku, they all thought at the same time: _'Wait for it…'_

"Aww…Hey, Dosha-chan. Where did you come from?" Sakura asked. She was oddly skeptical about Sasuke hearing a talking fox. Sure he was a cute little critter, but the odds of a natural animal talking were…close to nil in her knowledge library.

She would have to rewrite some of those volumes within her mind when all reasonable logic flew out the window as Doshaburi opened his mouth, with a one-track mind for food. "A-Are you going to eat that, S-Sakura?"

'…_And there it is…'_ was the resonating thought of those that have heard the tawny-toned fox speak.

Haku, however, widened her eyes to the maximum and then looked over at Naruto, who was beaming ear to ear in a foxy grin. _'He wasn't kidding, after all…'_

And as for Sakura…

She backed away, with a look of utter shock and horror, from the earthen-hued kit to the closest wall and pointed at him. "Y-y-y-you can t-t-t-talk!?" _**'What the hell!?'**_ Inner Sakura was just as petrified from hearing the vocal vulpine cub.

"H-Hai…so, are you g-going to eat that, S-Sakura?" He pointed a paw over to her plate of leftovers.

The green-eyed bookworm paled considerably. Dosha-chan was no ordinary animal, and what Sasuke had demanded to know earlier had soon come to the pink-haired kunoichi as well. "W-W-What…H-How did he learn to speak!?"

"Ano," Naruto spoke up, giggling a bit that skeptic Sakura-chan did not know everything there is to know in the world. Take that, know-it-all. "I found him like that. He learned how to talk on his own…"

"That's the lamest excuse that I've heard again, dobe," the dark-haired avenger muttered. "Tell me the honest story."

Naruto sighed in defeat. That loophole failed, so he picked plan B, the half-truth. "Okay, so thanks to my 'bloodline,' I was able to commune with Dosha-chan. As a result, he can now speak our language, but…his stuttering is a minor problem, but it will eventually go away. Are you satisfied now, teme?" He looked down at his plate, picked up a rice ball and tossed it to his Dosha-chan, who jumped up to obtain it within the confines of his muzzle.

"Hn," replied the dark-eyed pre-teen, who just popped another rice ball into his gullet. He warily eyed his teammate. _'But something doesn't quite add up though. I have my eye on you, Naruto…'_

Sakura was relieved but somewhat mystified by how the blond wonder explained it. She would have to keep her watchful on him as well as she sat back down in her place at the table. _'I'm keeping my eyes on you, baka…'_

Said target of watchful eyes ignored the awkward stares by his teammates and slurped away at his miso broth, without a care to the world, almost as if nothing happened. He knew that he was on the receiving end of the glares, but the elf-eared genin cheekily grinned while polishing off his bowl.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Unnamed Bridge, 10 am)

"Well, it looks like this is the end," said Tazuna after the bridge opening ceremony. "Thanks to you all, I was able to complete the bridge. You have my undying gratitude." He held out his hand for the one-eyed scarecrow to shake. Giving his patented eye-smile, he gladly accepted the invitation to shake the hand of the bridge builder.

"As for my parting words for you all," Tazuna added. "Sakura…" The pink-haired bookworm looked up. "The road for you will be tough, and I know that you will, along with your team, excel as high as the sky. Focus first on strengthening yourself before focusing on others. Sasuke…" The raven-haired Uchiha looked up at the old man as well. "As for you, I will say this. Never lose sight of your goal, and cherish the ones that you have in the here and now, for they may not be here later on. I know about what happened to you kid, and I'm sorry to hear that, but you need to learn how to look past that and rely on your team, instead of trying to be the big, bad lone wolf to fight on your own. Only then will you become stronger, and true strength will shine when you have people to protect. Isn't that right, Kakashi-san?"

With a silent nod from the Cyclopean scarecrow, he faced the elf-eared maelstrom and his fuzzy partner and smiled. "And as for you Naruto, I expect great things from you, with Doshaburi-chan included. For those who will underestimate you on your ninja way, prove them wrong for me. Show them what it means to be a genius of hard work, okay?"

"Ossu!" Naruto shouted while giving a military salute.

Doshaburi, in his cute, vulpine manner held a paw to his muzzle, which looked like a salute. "I too w-will do m-my best, T-Tazuna-san."

He turned to the former oinin and said, "Haku, watch out for the reckless little blond for me and make sure you keep him outta trouble, will ya? Who knows what kind of hell he could start up?" She blushed, giggled and nodded. The elf-eared hell-raiser just scoffed at the old man.

"It's odd," Tazuna concluded as he looked out into the ocean. "Not once since the second encounter with you and Zabuza did I ever take a sip of sake. I guess that I'm a bit wiser when I sober up…" He chuckled at his own comment while some of the crew sweat-dropped. "Well, you should get going. The ferry leaves within the hour, and I hope that you do visit again."

XXXXXXXXXX

When Squad Seven with two new additions walked out of view on the grandiose bridge, Tazuna broke the bittersweet silence. "You know, that pointy-eared kid has a bright future ahead of him. I can already tell that he's going to be this future's guiding light of unwavering hope. For that reason, I will name this bridge in honor of him. From this day forward, this will be known as the Great Naruto Bridge…" His daughter giggled. "What's so funny, Tsunami-chan?"

"I'm sorry Tousan, but that's kind of a silly name," the young woman replied. "His name does mean fish-cake, right?"

"No," the bridge builder retorted with a serious tone. "He told me beforehand, when we were traveling here, that his name means 'maelstrom.'"

"Oh, well that makes sense," Tsunami realized. "Along with his little cloudburst, Dosha-chan, I think that they might make a powerful duo…"

"That's right!"

The two older individuals glanced down at Inari, who had fervor in his eyes. "He _will_ take the shinobi world by storm! I believe in him, and I too won't ever give up!"

Tsunami and Tazuna had widened eyes on the little kid. Since when did _Inari_ show _more_ signs of determination?

XXXXXXXXXX

(Departed Ship to Land of Fire)

'**All right, kit,'** Kyuubi grabbed the attention of the blond, who was sitting against the side of a wall with Dosha-chan in his lap. **'You, me, mindscape, now. We have important matters to discuss.'** Without even one bit of a warning, Naruto's mind was reeled in by the bijuu lord.

XXXXXX

(Mindscape)

Naruto fell flat on his face from dropping in suddenly without a minute's notice. Getting up and rubbing his face, he turned to his now-impatient tenant.

"Oi…what's with the rush, Kyuubi-sama? Normally, you'd be beating around the bush in riddles by now."

"**I'm here to discuss about your training regimen, boy,"** Kyuubi answered. **"Now is as good a time as ever, since you're secluded in this hallway on the ship."**

"Okay, Kyuubi-sama, I'm all pointy ears," the fox-boy said with a fang-toothed grin.

"**Well, to get to the heart of the matter,"** began the Demon Lord. **"Since you have better chakra control, I suggest that you should learn how to walk on water…"**

"Walk on water…? So that will help out with applying the right amount of chakra in small bursts and fluctuations, right?"

"**Correct, young one. Adding onto that, Dosha-chan needs to condition himself to be in prime fighting form. With the aid of my chakra in his coils, he could be able to harness and control chakra in small bursts for now. Have Dosha-chan climb trees while attaching small weights onto his legs, and once the kit gets used to it, up the weight amount. He needs to be in top shape if he wants to learn those jutsu in that scroll that you have found.**

"**As for hearing about the shadow clone trick, that will greatly help out with you learning elemental chakra-based ninjutsu. However, I haven't the slightest idea as to what is your affinity. But from my observation, you look like a wind-type, since you appear to be wild, unpredictable and unruly, as far as other humans go. You can be as gentle as a summer breeze, but you can be destructive like a typhoon as well."**

"Aww…I'm _so_ flattered by your words, Kyuubi-sama," the whisker-marks responded sarcastically. He pranced around to gauge his tenant's emotions, which got the desired effect. Riled up and growling was the beast behind the bars. It worked…a little too well. The bijuu lord decided to never again give his host another compliment.

"**That's enough, kid. Do that again, and I'll bestow upon you something terrible in your sleep."** He sneered at the befuddled kit.

"What are getting at, Kyuubi?" A sudden flash of a nude Haku appeared into the blond's mind. Now it was the demon lord's turn to laugh as his host flew back by a fountain of blood that poured from his nose. It was cruel, but it was very funny to play with the kit's emotions. The bijuu lord made a tick-mark on the inside of his jail-cell. Kyuubi…one. Kit…none.

"_**That**_** is what I was referring to, boy. For you see, foxes are…**_**lustful**_** creatures with wants and needs…"**

"Oh no, I will _never _do that to Haku-chan. She's just only a friend. And besides, I'm not ready for commitment," he pouted and crossed his arms.

"**Well, let's regress to the training," **Kyuubi continued. **"There is also a technique that you need to learn, in order to be one with your inner kitsune. It is the heart of essence, and the soul of being. It is a force on-par with Amaterasu of the Sharingan, and it will take a long while for you to come close to mastering it."**

"Well what is it?" He wondered. How did the Kyuubi out of most of the ethereal beings take the time to create something that could counter a high-level ninjutsu…from a _kekkei genkai_ as a matter of fact?

"**It is a kinjutsu compared to you humans, but you are an exception. Ever since I became contained, I theorized on how to come up with some counters to the Mangekyou Sharingan. I found one solution that only you, my host, can learn. It is my own personal Hijutsu Higi: Youkai no Enkou. What it does is that it attacks the spiritual essence of a human being when conjured properly through intense meditation. The best part of it is that you can mix it in readily with your other ninjutsu that do not have an elemental affinity already mixed into it."** Naruto's jaw dropped down onto the floor, with eyes wide in disbelief. This would add more variety and flexibility to his techniques…that is, if he knew of any ninjutsu for the moment. He thought to himself that his repertoire was severely lacking…in more ways than one. He only had the **Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**, along with basic Academy-level techniques, bar **Bunshin no Jutsu**, and a kinjutsu to keep perverts at bay.

'_Hey…yoo-hoo…Earth to dobe…Are you there…?'_ Sasuke's voice echoed from around the mindscape.

"**Well, we'll continue this discussion later, boy. So go and pacify the Uchiha."** He paused and thought for a minute. **"Before you go, brat, know this…"**

"What now, Kyuubi-sama?"

"**There **_**are**_** better fish in the sea that don't scream at you or disrespect you, if you catch my drift. I'm sure that Haku-chan will do, along with that quiet, shy Hyuuga girl. Now **_**they**_** are solid and worth your time in gold, my little kit."** The sly trickster winked and grinned at his confused host before thrusting him back into the material realm…

XXXXXXXXXX

(Ship, mid-afternoon)

The fox really was a mystery to him as he slowly emerged to planet Earth, thinking about what he had told him. He would have to think it over later and berate the teme from intervening with his talk with his tenant.

"What do you want, bastard?" the bewhiskered kid asked with narrowed eyes at the brooding avenger.

"Kakashi wanted to see you," he flatly stated and walked off.

'_So much for a conversation holder…'_ Naruto mused as he got up and walked to the upper deck.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Ship, Upper Deck, portside)

"You called, Sensei?" asked the blue-eyed wonder, with the dusty-hued fox, asleep in his arms.

"Indeed I did, Naruto," replied the Cyclopean jounin as he looked out toward the choppy waves. "So tell me what you found in your batch of scrolls."

"So far, I have found two Haruno clan hijutsu and genjutsu scrolls along with some scrolls that I would like to keep for myself, if that is fine with you, Kakashi-sensei."

"Well, Naruto," Kakashi lazily said. "To the victor go the spoils, so you've earned them and you can do whatever you please with those scrolls. Just be sure to hand over those two scrolls that you've mentioned to Sakura…"

"Yeah, about that, Sensei…It turns out that Sakura could have a kekkei genkai."

He turned and looked wide-eyed at his elf-eared charge, surprised that he dropped the honorific from her name as well. "What is it then?"

"I'm not all too sure. It says in the scroll that indications of the bloodline limit include alternating emotional tendencies and a strong sense of will manifesting into another subconscious being, or something along the lines of that. But anyway, the other one has a set of strange-looking weapons that I have never seen before." He paused and then thought about what Hisao-san had mentioned. "So I take it that you found the Sakibou clan scrolls of summoning?"

'_It looks like Naruto is smarter than what he leads us to believe,'_ Kakashi thought. "Yes, I have found them, along with some Katon and Raiton ninjutsu."

"Oh, that's fine." The whisker-marks peered out to look at the serene ocean. "You can keep those. Frankly, after dealing with the Fire Daimyo's wife, I can't _stand_ cats. And as for those styles of jutsu, I neither want to burn myself nor would I want to electrocute myself. You can go ahead and teach them to Sasuke-teme for all I care. He needs it more than I do…_much_ more."

"Well, you seemed to have matured quite a bit since the time we've come here, Naruto." The elite jounin of Konoha pulled out his filthy novel and grinned while Naruto had an irritated look etched onto his face from seeing his sensei's overt perversion. "We have about two months before the start of the Chuunin trials, so train hard with what you've acquired. I do believe that you and your teammates will be ready, and with regards to the shadow clone trick…you may be the only one that gets the maximum benefit from it, since your chakra reserves are high-chuunin, possibly mid-jounin.

"That's all I have to say, Naruto, so go and rest up, because you and your team will start off hitting the ground running in training pretty soon…" He disappeared in a whirl of leaves, leaving the blond boy to mutter something along the lines of "perverted sensei," "show-off," and "wishing to learn the **Konoha Shunshin no Jutsu**," before he walked off to find the green-eyed bookworm that was his teammate…

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N**: Just to let you know that the weapons in the Kusa Haruno clan scroll was made up by me. I decided to base the idea of having the four-sided sporting boomerangs in the fic.

I have also given you clues as to why Naruto will be considered a druid, which will live up to the name in due time. For those of you who have not played the PC hack-and-slash role-playing game Diablo II, then you will miss what I mean by "druid."

The druid, from Diablo II, is a master of the natural elements and can control them at will. He also summons spirit creatures such as ravens, creeper vines (lively vines that eat corpse to replenish mana and/or life), wolves, and a giant grizzly bear.

In the shinobi sense, of course it would require handseals, and there will be many different combinations for as to how Naruto will vanquish a foe. The whole creeper vine idea I chucked for something even better, and you can probably guess as to what will be its replacement. Doshaburi takes the place of a wolf and as for the summoned animals…they will not appear until MUCH LATER down the road, like late Part II.

Well, to keep my promise, here is my present to you…Haku's profile:

Haku (Part I)

Age: 14 (one year younger than the databooks and Narutopedia)

Sex: Female (gender switch very common)

Residency: wandering oinin alongside Momochi Zabuza; will reside in Konoha

Birthday: 9 January (same birthday as in the databooks and Narutopedia)

Height: 4'9"

Abilities: Hyouton-class ninjutsu user; able to teleport using **Makyou Hyou Shou (Demonic Ice Mirrors)**

Relatives: none

Quirks/Mannerisms: good-natured, compliant and relatively eager; dislikes unnecessary killing; antithesis to the introverted, but soft-spoken Hinata (who will hopefully help her out later)

I'm getting mixed opinions with regards as to if this should be a Harem or a two-way romance as the story develops in Part II. I would like to get your most humble, honest opinion for as to which direction should it go. I know that it is a bit early, but I would like to get your thoughts on the issue.

If it is going to be a Harem, then I've already set the limit, which is the "bare minimum" of five lucky ladies. Four of those slots are already filled if the story goes this route. The fifth slot, however, will be up to you to decide. With regards to the fifth slot, there are a few exceptions. It cannot be Ino, Sakura, Tenten or Temari.

Also, think about this while thinking about that fifth slot, should the harem work. Should Nii Yugito of Kumogakure be placed into the harem, include her as an understanding, older-sister type or should she be killed off? I can probably guess that the very latter of those options will not be picked at all, since that would be too close to the manga.

**Update: As of 13 March 2008, the romance aspect has been decided for this fic. Sorry, but no more suggestions are going to be taken at this time. Thank you; that is all.**

_Jikai… (Next time…) on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Arrival: Force of Nature_

_Kyuubi: __**Kit, open your eyes…now!**_

Romaji/New Jutsu guide:

**Oiroke no Jutsu**: Sexy Technique (I'm pretty sure that you all know what this technique can do…)

**-jiisan**: humble honorific for grandfather

**Yoshi**: All right!

**Mori no Magen**: Demonic Illusions of the Forest

**Kusagakure no Shitan Toge**: Rosewood Thorn of the Hidden Grass

**Fuuma shuriken**: Windmill throwing-star

**Hijutsu**: secret art

**Kekkei Genkai: Naitekiiyoku**: Bloodline Limit: Inner Will (also known as Inner Ambition); unknown rank bloodline trait passed down through the Haruno clan; manifestation of one's darker self within the subconscious of the mind; the dark manifestation allows for easy absorption of information and data while the inheritor is asleep or unconscious; the darker self can take over if the inheritor's life is threatened (created)

**Kirigakure no Kage no Kisaki**: Haruno Ume's nickname, the "Shadow Empress of the Hidden Mist"

**-ton**: "release," added with elemental prefixes **Ka-** (fire), **Sui**- (water), **Do**- (earth), **Rai- **(lightning), and **Fuu** (wind); also includes prefixes with **Hyou- **(ice) and **Moku**- (wood)

**Nin-ken no Hijutsu: Tama Senkou**: Secret Art of the Ninja-Hounds: Spirit Flash: unclassified supplementary hijutsu for canine-class animals; canine's body glows white while chakra potential quadruples and gives added strength and speed (created)

**Itadakimasu**: expression of gratitude before meals

**Tousan**: father

**Amaterasu**: "Shining Heaven"; unclassified kekkei genkai ninjutsu; Sharingan user, in the Mangekyou state, creates a powerful, jet-black flame as hot as the sun and will continue to burn for seven days and seven nights; ninjutsu is cast from the right eye of the Sharingan doujutsu (Narutopedia)

**Hijutsu Higi: Youkai no Enkou (Secret Art Ritual: Phantom Flame)**: Unclassified all-range kinjutsu; user conjures an otherworldly magenta flame in the palm of his hands; can be readily mixed with other ninjutsu for more power; this flame attacks the spiritual essence more so than that of the body; hard to accomplish but a feat in and of itself when pulled off (created)

**Bunshin no Jutsu**: Clone Technique (or Replication Technique)

**Konoha Shunshin no Jutsu**: Leaf Body Flicker Technique (self-explanatory, or should I expound on it?)


	7. Arrival: Force of Nature

**A/N**: Well, I'm at it again. And for those that vehemently stated in the reviews that a harem should not happen, I can't promise anything as of yet. For those that support it, I can say the same thing to you as well. So, on that note, I'm still hanging dry on a fence post for now. The elements for romance will happen. It's just that it is going to be a bit complex.

With regards to Sakura's kekkei genkai, there is still more to it than meets the eye. You will see in a bit…

Regarding some of the characters from the Naruto movies, I'm sorry, but you're tough out of luck. They aren't considered canon, so I am not including Fujikaze Yukie, or rather, Kazahana Koyuki, into the harem. That is, if there may be one. But I have plans for the trek to Snow Country, and it _will be_ different from its movie-counterpart (albeit more peaceful with a potential threat here and there). Naruto will journey to the outskirts of the country in Part II.

As for those that have read harem fics, most of them are portrayed as unbelievable comical mischief and mayhem. I, however, would write them in serious detail, since love is something not to be trifled with, and it is a raw emotion to boot. That is the reason why, should it progress that way, the harem is so limited.

I can also see the angle from the vehement Naru/Hina fans' points-of-view. Most of the characters that Naruto will meet may pose as sisterly figures that share a common bond with him and nothing more, but some of them will be attracted to his personality. But alas, it is a bit early and only time will tell…

To **jbalman **and **Aaron45123**: You have given me a possible idea for as to how I'm going to satiate and/or appease those that love harems and vehement Naru/Hina fans (for a potential midway). Piggybacking from your thoughts on the matter, Hinata _will be_ in Naruto's life, and Haku _may_ potentially harbor those feelings as well. As for the ladies that he'll meet, they may act as one big happy family, all sisterly. Even though he _may be involved_ with one or two of them, the guys of Konoha will still be envious of the blond wonder for being in the company of so many girls. I don't know, but I'll think on it some more. This is all hypothetical conjecture for the moment.

**Update: Pairings have been decided, and no more suggestions will be taken at this time.**

I would like to say that, whenever a technique is listed with the word 'created' by them means that I, DarkHeroOrion, have come up with those techniques, and if you wish to include them in your fic, PM me to get my permission…and be sure to give me due credit.

Before you continue to read, know this: I absolutely despise character bashing of any sort. I would like for them to stay tried and true within their sphere of influence in the Naruto world. In addition, it would be doing a disservice to Kishimoto-san if I were to do that.

For instance, I will not be calling Sasuke "emo" or "gay"; he had experienced a life-changing event during his _impressionable_ childhood which keeps him closed off from the world and allows no one to enter into it (in a way, kind of like Kakashi), possibly due to the fear of losing someone else very close to him. His character goes further in-depth than one can see at face value; frankly, his childhood was just as messed up as Naruto's, but Sasuke copes with the pain of losing everything. As for Naruto, he knows the pain of absolute loneliness, depraved of everything from the very beginning; no parents and no love shown to him. However, Sasuke will fluctuate between repenting and regressing to revenge throughout the fic; in other words, he will be struggling to see what is righteous and what is false.

Well, with that said (which was a handful, by the way), let us march onward to the grand event…

If you don't like profanity, I'm sorry, but Inner Sakura is going to have her time here for a bit…

_**Chapter Seven**__: Arrival: Force of Nature_

(Ship, Top Deck)

Staring up at the sky, Squad Seven's pink-haired wiz-kid reflected on the events that had taken place during her journey outside of the village to Wave Country. She was racked with the feeling of uncertainty from Tazuna's words when he had bid them farewell…

'_Focus first on strengthening yourself before focusing on others.'_

How could she strengthen herself? She had no natural ability, save for rote memorization and acing just about every exam at the Ninja Academy. She was the first out of her clan to join with the Ninja Academy to begin with, and her parents said nothing along the lines of whether or not their clan had any secret techniques. She thought that her other teammates had it a lot easier than she did.

Sasuke-kun possessed the Sharingan, and along with that, he was a natural-born leader and genius of the former Uchiha clan. Ninjutsu would come easily for her dark-haired heartthrob, since he could easily copy it with his doujutsu. He already mastered a Chuunin-level Katon ninjutsu when he was around six years-old. In fact, to her general knowledge, elemental manipulation training never came easy to a shinobi until gaining the rank of Chuunin or higher, seeing that it required massive chakra reserves.

Speaking of which, she excelled at chakra control, which had been indicative signs of a genjutsu-type ninja, but her chakra-tank was like a drop in the bucket when compared to Naruto's ungodly amount. Not only were his reserves ridiculously high, but the blue-eyed wonder had possessed stamina that would make even the Green Beasts of Konoha crave for it, while jumping for joy, screaming at the top of their lungs about the "passionate flames of youth."

Along with the chakra control, she felt as if there had been a second presence within her mind; someone that would not care about how she would outwardly express her mind in…_colorful_ language. The essence of that being felt powerful beyond her measure, and she had a feeling that it would come in handy one day…

"Thinking again, Sakura?"

She turned from the sky and looked to see her whisker-marked teammate walk up, with a loyal Doshaburi by his side. "Oh, it was nothing, Naruto. It was just that…I feel like that I need to get stronger…for the sake of the team, and I don't want to hold back any of you. I want to be strong…like Haku-neesan." She lightly shook her head. "Ugh…Tazuna-san's message is still ringing in my head." She grasped at her pink-colored locks. All of a sudden, she felt the presence and heard its voice echoing loudly in the recesses of her mind.

'_**Well maybe you should take what he said and apply it, smart-ass! Shannaro!'**_ A chalky outline of a fiery-tempered doppelganger materialized into her purple, hazy subconscious.

'_Wait…who said that?'_ She knew that she should not be hearing voices inside her head. Should she?

'_**It's me, dumb-ass, your Inner Self…your Inner Will!'**_ Inner Sakura clenched her cracking fists in fury and unbridled rage.

'_Are you…a _part _of me?'_

'_**Hell yeah I'm a fucking part of you…Shannaro!'**_ She roared, holding up a fist.

"Ne, Sakura," said the blond wonder. "Are you alright?" He waved his hand in front of her blank face.

Her eyes fluttered and focused back to the real world. "Huh?"

"I said, 'Are you alright?' You spaced out there for a minute. I was…kind of worried."

"Ano…Naruto…" The green-eyed bookworm wondered if maybe her teammate could fill her in. At least he would not call her crazy if she told him about the voice in her head. "Have you ever heard a voice in your head before?"

Naruto paused for a minute with a scrutinizing look at his pink-haired teammate. _'Hmm…maybe the scrolls that I'm carrying are making that Inner Will of hers act a bit unruly…just like someone I know…'_

'**Do you want a wet dream with both Hinata-chan **_**and**_** Haku-chan in it, boy?'** The demon-lord did _not_ want to be labeled as a mere conscience. He was a nigh-omnipotent being, not some part of the human psyche. Naruto blanched and lost all tan in his skin.

'_No…no…Gomen, Kyuubi-sama…I take back that comparison! Just please, don't subject me to _that _again!'_

'**Ha-ha…'** Kyuubi…two. Kit…goose-egg. His complexion returned as he could have sworn that the beast behind bars displayed a full-toothed foxy grin. His retribution would soon be due, but he did not know how it would be done.

Naruto still wondered why is it that the demon fox was tugging at the idea of Hinata. Sure she was the immaculate princess and heiress to Konoha's most prestigious clan, so why would she, the dark, timid girl, want to involve herself with the village outcast, who was loud, brash and obnoxious? Well, he was certainly loud and brash, but he humbled a little bit from his near-death experience.

Putting aside that thought, he finally answered his green-eyed teammate. "Yeah, all the time, but sometimes it could get annoying." That earned a snort from Kyuubi. "So, I take it that _you_ hear your inner voice as well?"

"Yeah, and apparently the voice felt a bit stronger ever since you showed up…"

"I think that your kekkei genkai is manifesting itself when in the presence of these scrolls." He held out two of the scrolls in front of her shocked expression. From her view, she had seen the Hidden Mist and Hidden Grass emblems on them, but when she picked them up and turned it over, she was sort of startled.

The Kiri scroll had a red teardrop inside a white circle. The Kusa scroll had a red tuft of grass surrounded by a white circle. Now she looked dumbfounded.

"…What are these, Naruto?" She was puzzled. Those stamps looked frighteningly familiar…they looked a _lot_ like her clan emblem that is marked on the back of her red dress. _'Wait a minute…this _can't _be…'_

"Just open them and find out. There's nothing harmful about them. Kakashi-sensei and I were looking over the scrolls that we found on Gatou's boat and—"

"Oh Kami-sama," Sakura said with excitement in her voice, completely tuning out the elf-eared genin. "I didn't know that I had relatives abroad who were ninja."

"Yeah, and you should read up on those scrolls, especially the one about your bloodline limit." Naruto stretched his muscles and cracked his back. "Well, if you need me, I'll be in my room…doing something." He muttered the last bit before walking off. He paused and turned to the green-eyed bookworm. "Make us proud, and remember…Tazuna-san expects great things from all of us." Turning on a heel with his foxy companion behind him, the odd pair walked off to leave Sakura to her thinking. She unwrapped the Haruno scroll from Kiri and looked at the various hijutsu documented onto it. She was amused…and a bit frightened at the same time.

'_So _you _are my kekkei genkai, huh?'_ She asked the figure in her mindscape.

'_**Damn right, pinky…Shannaro!'**_ Inner Sakura placed her hands on her hips with a prideful posture. _**'That means…you and I have a **_**lot **_**of work to do to get your pathetic ass stronger…'**_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Ship, Level One, bedroom cabin)

The raven-haired avenger was lying on top of his bed-covers and stared aimlessly at the very low ceiling. His arms were behind his head as he pondered the last few days of their mission.

He felt as if he was going nowhere in his training, feeling as if he had reached a barrier that he could not surpass. Creeping into his thoughts were the words that Tazuna had mentioned to him before they left…

'_Never lose sight of your goal, and cherish the ones that you have in the here and now, for they may not be here later on. I know about what happened to you kid, and I'm sorry to hear that, but you need to learn how to look past that and rely on your team, instead of trying to be the big, bad lone wolf to fight on your own. Only then will you become stronger, and true strength will shine when you have people to protect…'_

Was Tazuna right? Was that the reason why he was not achieving the desired results? Was it due to his lack of partnership and camaraderie with the rest of his team? He then remembered the bell test, when Kakashi said that he would sacrifice teamwork just for personal self-gain. In an indirect way, Kakashi called him "scum," and he did not want to be labeled that.

Sasuke then thought back to yesterday, when he told off Haku while he was training…

_(Flashback)_

_Sasuke felt the strain in his muscles, but he did not care at all. He wanted to push himself beyond what he could normally do. It was then that Haku had walked up to make her presence known._

"_I think that you should pause and regroup, Sasuke-kun…" She had said with a hint of worry in her intonation._

"_I'm fine," he deadpanned. He did not want _her_ out of all people to be criticizing him._

"_I…brought water for you, if you'd like," she said in a kind demeanor._

"_No thanks. Now just leave me be."_

"_But—"_

"_I don't want to hear comments from the peanut gallery, all right?" he growled as he continued to pummel the tree…_

_(End Flashback)_

'_Damn…I _was_ being an asshole, wasn't I?'_ He thought to himself, with his pride shot out of the sky like Naruto's date offer to Sakura a while ago. He kind of wished that she had not been there to be the outlet of his frustration. After all, she was concerned for the dark-haired warrior, and he snapped at her.

'_I guess I ought to…_apologize_ to her…she didn't deserve that…'_ He thought to himself as he bit the bullet. He was going to track down the former oinin and…apologize, which was something that he could _never_ bring himself to do. He was in the wrong and he was going to rectify the matter. So the raven-haired Uchiha slipped on his ninja sandals and began to search the ship for the girl in the forest-toned battle kimono. Luckily, he did not have to go far, for she was already at his cabin door and was about to knock.

"Gomen, Sasuke-kun," the dark-haired ice-user said. "I thought you were out, so I thought I'd knock…"

"I'm sorry." The dark-eyed genius whispered under his breath with his head tilted downward. He _really_ did not like apologizing and he was reluctant to do so at all. But he had to go through with it to get the unwanted tension off his chest.

"Excuse me Sasuke-kun, but come again?" asked the ice-manipulating kunoichi, with eyebrows raised.

His volume approached audible levels as he looked her in the eyes. "I said…that I'm…sorry for…snapping at you while I had been training." He mentally sighed. _'If the dobe were here, he would _never _live this down…'_

"Oh…well, I accept your apology, Sasuke-kun, and I forgive you." Haku gave him a lighthearted smile and then walked away to go topside for a little bit of fresh air. For some odd reason, Sasuke's heart skipped a beat for a moment and a phantom blush came and went from his face when she smiled.

'_What the hell _is_ this feeling?'_ Sasuke was at a loss for words for describing how he felt and shut the door.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Ship's Stern)

Naruto looked out at the vast sea after he summoned a few shadow clones to read on Fuuton ninjutsu theory. To put it simply, Naruto would have to utilize the force of the wind via means of its slicing power. In order for the exercise to take effect, he concluded that he needed something that was flimsy but easy to cut. It was a shame that there were not any plants or shrubbery around the ship in order for him to do the exercises. He was about to turn around to lean back to the wall of the captain's quarters when he smelled a familiar aroma of peaches.

Still looking out at sea, he asked, "Is there anything you need Haku-chan?" He then turned around to see her with Dosha-chan cradled in her arms.

"No, Naruto-kun," she responded as she shook her head. "I just came here to return your fox-hound. It turns out that he was pigging out at the buffet while you weren't looking."

"M-My t-tummy hurts a b-bit," Doshaburi cut in. His belly had unrealistically doubled in size.

"Luckily, he didn't open his mouth, aside from stuffing his face." She girlishly giggled. "I should suggest that you find an appropriate diet for him when you arrive at Konoha."

'_She's kind of cute when she giggles like that…wait, what am I saying?'_ He shook his head from that thought.

'**Aww…Is my little kit growing up?'** retorted his wayward tenant.

'_Can it kitsune!'_ He mentally roared into the recesses of his mind.

'**You know you want to **_**ravish**_** her, kit…Don't deny it.'** He sure loved to poke fun at the kit. It was too good to pass up.

'_You know, I _wish_ that you had an off-switch…It's you that's influencing me, isn't it?'_

'**Who…me? Now why would I do something like that, kit? I'm hurt.'** The bijuu lord gave a fake pout, along with a fake vulpine whine.

'…_Let's just get back to training with harnessing that kitsune energy…'_ The blond whisker-marks looked at Haku and said, "Listen Haku-chan, do you mind keeping an eye out for me while I meditate for a bit? I don't want anybody interrupting me."

"Sure thing, Naruto-kun," answered the dark-haired ice-mistress while rubbing the area behind Doshaburi's ears.

"Th-That feels…l-lovely…" He shut his gray eyes and enjoyed the petting while off on Cloud Nine.

As for Naruto, he walked over to the wall and sat up against it. He was breathing calmly and relaxed his muscles. Closing his eyes, he began to meditate, feeling for the power of will within. After an elapsed ten minutes, he felt a small flicker in his hand. He looked to see that a small pea-sized magenta flame was hovering above the palm of his right hand. It felt as if it was pulsing like a human's heartbeat.

'_Is this it?'_ he asked his naughty, perverted tenant.

'**That is…**_**remarkable**_**, kit. I didn't know that you would take to it that easily. I would expect you to at least get it to that size in about an hour or so…but you are, by far, the most unpredictable kid that I've ever met, so I guess that the rules **_**never**_** apply to you.' **For once, the demon was _impressed_ by his host.

"Hey Haku-chan, look what I can do," the whisker-marks said happily with a grin on his face, holding out the wondrous, other-worldly fire to Haku.

Looking at the pea-shaped flame, she asked, "What is that, Naruto-kun? I haven't seen any fire of this caliber before."

"It's a gift from the fox," he replied, which earned him a wide-eyed look from the young lady. "He said that this is something that only I can learn and no one else, since I'm his jailor. He also said that this fire attacks the essence of soul more so than that of the body…and it can potentially counter a Mangekyou Sharingan **Amaterasu**. It only works in theory, and I'm not sure if it can work in practice." He then registered a foxy grin. "Not only that, but if I can learn ninjutsu without elemental affinities, then I can readily mix in this **Youkai no Enkou**."

"Interesting," Haku stated as she narrowed her eyes to analyze the flame. "It looks like that it can possess potential healing abilities as well." She carefully placed the napping Doshaburi on the floor and whipped out a scroll from her pocket. "I want you to put that flame onto the scroll, Naruto-kun."

The elf-eared whisker-marks turned over his palm and placed the tiny ember onto the scroll. With a flash of hand seals, Haku sealed away the fire for safekeeping. "I'll check out the properties, and maybe I could use it to create effective medicines and salves."

'_It looks like you're a walking gold mine, Kyuubi-sama,'_ Naruto complimented. He guessed that being a host to a demon was not _all_ too bad. It had its perks.

'**Okay, I think that's enough for today. We can pick it up tomorrow, when we set anchor back in Fire Country.'** Naruto walked back to his cabin after dispelling his clones and taking the parchments, while also absorbing more information regarding Fuuton theory.

Haku looked at where the blond wonder had been sitting and had noticed a small lump that had risen in the wooden floorboards. She wrapped up the scroll and scooped up the furry cloudburst and went to her cabin. That minute incident bothered her to no end. _'How _did _those floorboards rise up…?'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Konoha, 26 hours later)

"_Freak!_"

"_He set the beast loose! Run for your lives!_"

"_Dem—_" The villager who was about to yell out the word "demon" was immediately knocked out by the ANBU patrolling the village and then taken away. Another villager tried to come up to the group and stab the jinchuuriki with a pocket knife but was soundly knocked out by a karate chop from the one-eyed Elite Jonin, who kept his one eye on his reading material.

Apparently, due to Naruto's "awakening" during the trip to Wave, some of the non-shinobi villagers were either running away in terror or glaring venomously at him, with even more disdain and hatred.

Haku looked over at Naruto, who had his head and pointy ears lowered. She knew for a fact that the comments were geared toward him. The ice-user empathized with the boy and her heart was out for him. She mentally scowled at the villagers for berating their village savior. It was a good thing that Dosha-chan was stashed away safely in his backpack on their way to visit the Hokage. Who knew what some civilians would have done had they seen a fox running around the town? It was then that she would make sure that Naruto would be safeguarded, and if anyone were to even look at him the wrong way, then they would be carted off to the hospital as a human pincushion.

'_Hmm…'_ she mused. _'I wonder if Hokage-sama has acupuncture lessons at the hospital…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Sakura noticed the death-glares at the blond. In an awkward kind of way, she felt sorry for him. It was then that she had seen herself as one of those villagers. She was just as guilty as the rest of them for belittling the blue-eyed wonder who sought for attention by pulling pranks.

'_Damn…_now _I feel like a real heel…'_ All of a sudden, her Inner Will spoke up and berated the pink-haired kunoichi.

'_**Oh, so **_**now **_**you figured it out!? You know that he would risk his fucking neck for you and what do you do…fawn over your so-called precious **_**Sasuke-kun**_**, while leaving Naruto to fend for himself…Shannaro! In fact, I think that it was **_**Naruto**_** that managed to whip those kids' asses that poked fun at you and your big-ass forehead when you were a kid! I'd say that he was the big brother you never had! Shannaro!'**_

To think that Sakura was absolutely stunned by being chewed out by her inner-self was an understatement. _'Since when did you start becoming independent of my thoughts, Inner Me?'_

'_**Simple…It happened when those scrolls were given to you…by **_**him **_**by the way.'**_ Inner Sakura shook her head. _**'Anyway, that Kiri scroll allows me to strengthen and become more independent, since I'm closer to the portal that leads to the Kage no Sekai…But we'll talk more about that later.'**_ She gave her outward-self an evil grin. _**'For now, focus on some of those supplementary genjutsu in the Kusa scroll, and if I find your pathetic ass **_**worthy enough**_** by my standards, then I'll train you in the youjutsu of Kirigakure.'**_

To Sakura, this was getting a bit awkward…_very _quickly…

XXXXXXXXXX

Sasuke, on the other hand was the target of very uncomfortable, idolizing stares from some of the local girls in the village…after they berated and sneered at the dobe. He _almost_ felt sorry for the blue-eyed "dead-last."

'_Something just isn't right though…Whenever I get a chance, I think I'll make a trip to the library.'_ Sasuke looked at the blond wonder, whose eyes found the ground particularly interesting for the moment. _'Naruto looks nothing like a cat at all. He looks more…canine, in a weird sort-of way. Now what is it that you're hiding, dobe?'_ His focus turned to the backside of the senbon-wielding expert…and then to the back of her head…and then back to her rear end. _'And what is this feeling that I get when I see her? I don't know what had come over me back at the ship. Oh well…I'll figure out one problem at a time, I suppose.'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Hokage's Office)

Sarutobi was idly fiddling through paperwork as his pipe hung lazily from his mouth. To him, paperwork was a major pain in the ass. He would have a shadow clone do the work for him; however, by the laws of the Hokage code of conduct, that would be forgery, strictly stipulating that a shadow clone is not an original, albeit a _copy_ of an original.

'_I wished that damn rule hadn't been put there in the first place…'_ the Professor mentally thought as he took another puff on his pipe.

The door opened and a Chuunin poked his head into the office. "Hokage-sama, Squad Seven is here for their debriefing…along with another individual."

"Send them in," he calmly stated as he signed another pointless document regarding types of toilet paper in the Academy.

One by one, the members of Squad Seven filtered in. Leading the pack was Kakashi; Sasuke appeared next; Sakura appeared afterward; and the biggest surprise of all, a pointy-eared Naruto and an unknown female filed in last.

Sarutobi blinked and stared at his whisker-marked surrogate grandson. "…Naruto…what happened to you…?"

"Well, you see Hokage-sama," said the one-eyed Copy-Ninja, with book put away and at full attention. "Naruto had…awakened his 'bloodline' ability, which would explain his growth spurt, increased muscle mass, pointy ears, slit pupils, enlarged canines…and claw-like hands."

Catching onto the hidden message, Sarutobi made a mental note to detain both Kakashi and Naruto after the debriefing. Taking another pipe-puff, he said, "Continue Kakashi."

"Very well then…Apparently, the mission was an actual A-ranked mission; however, the Wave Country was in absolute poverty by a crime syndicate operator by the name of Gatou, so they had scrounged enough appropriations for a C-ranked mission.

"The two rogue shinobi that we had come across were Momochi Zabuza, the Demon of the Bloody Mist, and his apprentice, Haku, who is here with us." The Professor widened his eyes. "Need not worry, Hokage-sama, for you see, she came to us on her own volition, thanks to the effort of Naruto here." Naruto gave a foxy grin and rubbed the back of his head.

"In the end, Zabuza was killed, Gatou was arrested and Tazuna completed the bridge, thanks to the money that I had…acquired from Gatou…"

"Are you telling me that you used that Sharingan of yours to extract the information regarding his bank accounts and wipe him dry, only to give it to the client?" Sarutobi questioned.

"Hai, Hokage-sama, because where else would that dirty money go? It was best suited for more important purposes, I think. I transferred some more money into my charges' account as well as your own.

"Regressing to the end of the mission, Naruto and I raided Gatou's boat to recover some important documents for our charges here. There were a couple of them that belonged to Sakura and Naruto by right. And speaking of the blond wonder…Naruto, care to say anything?"

The elf-eared genin walked up respectively and began. "Jiisan, I found a stray fox kit while we were on that ship." Sarutobi gave his honorary grandson a worried look as Naruto unzipped his backpack. Doshaburi hopped out of the bag and scratched behind his head.

"…Naruto, you know how most of the villagers will think of the kit, right?" Sarutobi raised an eyebrow when the fuzz-ball hopped up on his desk and looked at him with his curious gray eyes. Doshaburi tilted his head and blinked.

'_Uh-oh…' _had been the collective thought of Squad Seven…plus Haku…with slightly widened eyes. _'Here it comes…'_

"What's the name of the fox cub, Naruto?" asked the "God of Shinobi."

"D-Doshaburi, H-Hokage-sama…" answered…the little fox cub instead of Naruto.

Sarutobi, along with the ANBU present in the room that had dropped their cloaks, looked wide-eyed at the dusty-hued kit.

"Are you pulling a ventriloquism act on me, Naruto?" asked a disbelieved Sarutobi. _'This is just only an act…'_ He chanted to himself.

"No, Jiisan, that's…Dosha-chan's voice. Not mine," answered the fox-boy.

"Hokage-sama, do you h-have any s-snacks in the office?" asked the forever-hungry cloudburst.

He looked over at Kakashi. "And how did you take to the talking fox, Kakashi?"

The Cyclopean jonin smiled sheepishly behind the deep-blue mask and scratched behind his head. "I…fainted…Hokage-sama…It was a surprise, to say the least."

To Sarutobi, that in and of itself was unbelievable. Hatake Kakashi…Copy-Ninja Kakashi…The one who has copied a plethora of ninjutsu at his disposal with his implanted Sharingan…ex-ANBU captain and battle-hardened warrior…fainted because of a talking fox cub. Sure Inuzuka Tsume's ninja-hound, Kuromaru spoke but that was not until much later in his years. The Sandaime Hokage was impressed with the little fur-ball, and he could be of some use as well.

"I have decided that the kit can stay, Naruto," Sarutobi concluded. "And as for the girl…"

"Wait, Jiisan. Listen to Haku's story before you make your decision," Naruto interrupted.

"Very well. Haku, was it? Please explain yourself."

After hearing her tale, which lasted for about ten minutes, Sakura shed a few tears for the poor young lady, Kakashi had a slightly saddened eye, Naruto had a look of empathy etched onto his face and Sasuke maintained his stoic face. As for Doshaburi…he fell asleep…and drooled on some of the Hokage's papers. Luckily, the Professor could care less, since they dealt with lawn care and magazine subscriptions.

"Okay, I have come to my decision," started the Sandaime, while taking another puff from his pipe. "Naruto, since you vowed to not have her used as a breeder by the council (and quite frankly, I wouldn't either), she is in your care, meaning that she is your responsibility while I set up her status as a Leaf kunoichi. She stays with you for the time being."

Naruto's eyes grew to the size of saucers. "Nani!? Don't you have any other place for her? My apartment is too small…"

"Isn't your apartment a two-bedroom, Naruto?" With a hesitant nod from the blond wonder, he continued with a small smile on his face. "Well that's that. It's settled. She will live with you."

'_For the love of ramen…'_ Naruto mentally sighed in defeat as his ears slightly drooped. Things were going to get awkward at his place _very_ quickly. He could feel it in the air as his tenant snickered to himself.

'_You better not take advantage of her, Naruto…'_ _**'Or else you'll be answering to us…Shannaro!'**_ At least Sakura and her Inner Persona could agree with two things…They both despised perverts and they respected Haku-neesan.

'_I wonder how it would be like if I had a girl alone at my place…'_ He paused and narrowed his eyes, smirking. _'Maybe I should grill him and kick him while he's down for the moment…'_ He was about to open his mouth when Sarutobi spoke up.

"Now that the debriefing is over, your mission is complete. Save for Kakashi, Naruto, Dosha-chan and Haku, you two may leave."

'_Aww…I wanted to hear more,'_ had been the identical thought from both the green-eyed bookworm and the dark-haired avenger when they filed out the door. After they had left, Kakashi performed his **Musei Shouheki no Jutsu** and the SS-class discussion continued on, regarding the tweaking of the seal and the information from the guardian fox about the Akatsuki and Uchiha Madara, with passing references to Orochimaru. Unfortunately, they had to leave since more paperwork was piling up, and Naruto completely forgot about the genealogy scroll.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Well, Haku-chan, this is my pad. Before you enter, consider yourself warned. I haven't done much cleaning around this place."

He turned the key into the key-slot and opened the door. Haku looked into the small flat and noticed that it was mildly quaint, save for a broken window panel and some dilapidated wallpaper lining around the living room walls. She could tell that this was a boy's spot, taking note of some of the clothes haphazardly thrown about on pieces of slightly old furniture.

"Ano, Naruto-kun…I think that redecorating is in order, because, in my opinion, it's a shame that you have to live this way. You just received a hardy stipend from the mission, as well as some funds from Gatou's account. I will ask Hokage-sama if he could be able to send somebody out to fix the window and wallpaper. I also think that the furniture needs to be thrown out."

"It's pointless. Jijii tried to get a couple of contractors out here, but they…you know…" Haku interrupted the blue-eyed wonder.

"I won't have you making up excuses for the villagers, Naruto-kun. They need to grow up and forget about the past. I will personally drag those contractors and force them to re-modify the broken things around here." Her voice had an edge to it.

'_I wonder if this is like having a big sister…'_ Naruto thought. She certainly was trying to look out for his best interest. "Okay, you win. We'll do that after I get some new clothes. Deal?"

"Okay, Naruto-kun," said Haku with a smile on her face. Even though they were close in height, she ruffled with his hair (which led to a pouting face from the blond wonder) and walked into what she proclaimed to be "her bedroom," and dropped off her things. "Let's go and get you some clothes to wear." She grabbed him by the hand and walked off after he locked the door. Doshaburi decided to sleep on the couch while they were away.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Konoha, Village Square)

Haku and Naruto walked into one of the ninja supplies shop when a store clerk saw the pointy-eared demon runt.

"You're not allowed in, kid," the man grunted. Haku shot a venomous glare and ki in his direction, which caused him to cower behind the counter.

"He is just as welcomed as anyone else in this village, sir," retorted the fuming ice-kunoichi as she narrowed her eyes. "You will not disallow him service, and if you just so conveniently gouge the prices, I swear that you will experience frozen hell. Is that clear?" With a slight nod from his scared look, her sweet demeanor and smile returned. "Good. Now we would like to find some better ninja gear for little Naruto-kun."

'_I didn't know that she could get riled up…I guess Sakura had an effect on her…just maybe…'_ Naruto thought to himself.

After a while, Naruto settled on two variations of attire.

The first attire looked like a variant of his former "kill-me-orange" jumpsuit, but this attire had the chances of blending in. It was a loose-fitting black jumpsuit with orange racing stripes lining the outward edges of the pants and arms. On the back of his jumpsuit was the red spiral symbol etched into the knitting. He then acquired a hitai-ate with an orange-clothed band. He still kept his forehead protector that he received from Iruka-sensei, since it was priceless to him and it was a symbol of recognition. Along with the ensemble, he picked up a black T-shirt with the Hidden Leaf symbol sewn in orange on it.

As for the second attire, he had a blood-red muscle shirt and midnight-blue pants, as well as black armor padding similar to those of ANBU. To give his suit a kick, he had acquired a long battle coat that was in identical hue with his pants and had crimson-hued flames dancing around the bottom of the flowing cape-like coat. He did not know how he was attracted to it, but it seemed to catch his eyes because it looked cool. He decided to have a crimson circle around the back region and have the kanji for "wild child" sewn into the circle. If he knew of who was his father, he would look like a mini-Minato running around Konoha, perchance should he wear it, which would probably be during the Chuunin finals.

For supplementary purposes, he had bought high-quality weights and fresh sets of kunai and shuriken. He managed to get his hands on spare shirts and pants, just to give him added variety and substitutions should anything rip on him. And he still had plenty of ryou to spare.

When they had walked out of the store, he remembered something. "I need to get Dosha-chan and run him by the Inuzuka complex and ask about a fox's diet and other things."

Rushing back to his apartment, he quickly hung up the clothes in his closet and woke up the ocher-hued canine.

"W-What is it, N-Naruto?" He asked as he rubbed his eye with his paw.

"We need to take you to the Inuzuka complex on the other side of town. I need to get you checked out and have you fitted for your Konoha-plated collar." He zipped open his backpack. "Alright Dosha-chan, time to get in."

"C-Can I walk around, Naruto…Please?" His sad gray eyes sealed the deal.

Naruto sighed and zipped up his backpack. "Fine, but we have to be careful though on our way there. Some of the villagers don't like foxes; others fear them."

XXXXXXXXXX

Luckily, no one had seen the dust-colored fox as the trio made their way to the dog-loving veterinarians that were the Inuzuka. With even more luck, they stumbled upon a shaggy-haired woman with a dark-hued nin-ken by her side, who just so happened to be the matriarch, one Inuzuka Tsume.

"What can I do for you kids?" she asked in her husky voice.

"I need to start up a regimen and a diet for the fox that I found in Wave Country," began the whisker-marks. "His name is Doshaburi, and I would like for him to train with me. I was wondering if you had any weights for canines as well."

A black-coated wolf-hound with an eye-patch over his right eye and left ear missing approached the small dust-mite and sized him up. He had potential. "You appear to be rather small for your age, pup. Do you think you have what it takes to _be_ a nin-ken?"

"I-I believe I do," replied the baby fox cub, which earned a wide eye from Kuromaru and even wider eyes from the Inuzuka matriarch.

"Since when can that runt learn how to talk, pipsqueak?" Tsume asked with a hint of disbelief.

"His name is Doshaburi," Naruto corrected. "And what it boils down to is that I have established a link with him, and he can be able to speak human. I don't want to explain any more details, so do you have any books on foxes, Tsume-san, along with a flea collar?"

Eyeing the duo and the young lady with interest, she answered, "Yes, as a matter of fact, I do. Anything regarding any family of Canidae can be found within the confines of this complex. Kuromaru, could you fetch the scrolls regarding fox diets, a leaf-plated flea collar and a set of weights for the little rascal?"

"Hai, Tsume-sama." The black-coated Kuromaru walked off and returned with aforementioned gear a few minutes later, after a thorough check-up on the fox's bill of health. The book on fox care was pretty lengthy and the weights appeared to have been used many times before.

"These are for you, Naruto," she said as she handed off the gear to him. "And when you have any time, I would like for your hound to train at our canine obstacle course around back."

Naruto looked at his pet for the okay. The dust-colored fox nodded. "He'll try it out when we get time. Arigatou, Tsume-san." He politely bowed for the gratitude from the head of the clan as the trio walked off, with Doshaburi sporting his new collar, making him an official nin-ken.

XXXXXXXXXX

Some of the villagers finally toned down some of the looks (mostly thanks to Haku and her ki-filled glares), but they were still eyeing Dosha-chan with slight fear or disdain. Some were indifferent to the fox, seeing that the boy had a companion to play with, instead of raising hell with more pranks. The kid had responsibility for another life, some had thought.

As Naruto was walking, he could not help but feeling as if he was being followed. The scent of lavender wafted for about the past two hundred meters. From the scent, he could sense that it was female and had a kindred aura to it. He paused, along with Doshaburi. Haku wondered why they stopped so suddenly.

"I know you're there, so come on out," he said with closed eyes. Sure enough, when he turned around, he saw a shy girl with indigo hair and white eyes, sporting a baggy jacket and Capri pants. _'Hinata-chan…'_

"Um…H-Hi, N-Naruto-kun," Hinata said shyly, with her fingers poking together.

"Hey Hinata-chan…What's up?" He asked with a smile on his face, which caused the Hyuuga heiress to blush again.

"Ano…I heard some…rumors that you c-came back w-with a f-fox…" She looked at the ground, away from the blond.

'_She sure is weird…but she does look kind of cute like that…Hey, what the hell am I saying again!? Damn you, Kyuubi!'_

'**Don't look at me, kit. This does **_**not**_** have my stench on it. Face it, kit. You're experiencing puberty, and you're finding girls attractive. There's no shame in that, kit. Care to wonder what's underneath that jacket of hers, ne?'** Kyuubi gave a sly grin.

'_Why must you be a pervert, kitsune?'_

'**I told you before, and I'm not repeating myself.'** He shrugged as he poked at the cage with his claws.

"Yeah, I do have a fox that I found and he's here right…with…me…now where did he go?" He looked around and then noticed an ocher fuzz feeling up on Hinata's leg. She was startled and jumped back.

"WAH!" The furry fox was soft and cuddly, but it surprised her. Then she rebounded and squealed, "Kawaii!" She picked up the dirt-hued canine and padded its soft fur. "I-It seems to be w-well-bred, N-Naruto-kun."

"Dosha-chan, you know that it's dangerous to be wandering about."

"Gomen, N-Naruto…" Hinata's eyes widened considerably and looked at the cute little fox cub.

"It looks like the cat's out of the bag," he sighed. "He can speak, Hinata-chan."

"Oh…Th-that's g-great, Naruto-kun." She blushed a bit, and that did not go unnoticed by Haku.

'_She has confidence issues,'_ she thought but then smirked a bit. _'But that will change soon enough…I think it would be time to set up a play date with those two.'_

"But listen, Hinata-chan, I need to get to start training here in a bit. It was nice running into you though. C'mon Dosha-chan. Let's go." The dust-hued fox leapt out of the Hyuuga heiress' hands. "See ya later, Hinata-chan." He paused. "Oh, where are my manners. Hinata-chan, this is Haku-chan. Haku-chan, this is Hyuuga Hinata-chan, heiress of the prestigious Hyuuga clan. Well, other than Hinata-chan, I think that the rest of her clan members are a bunch of stiffs." The ice-user and the clan heiress giggled by Naruto's brusqueness. "Well, we need to go. Bye Hinata-chan."

"B-Bye, Naruto-kun." All of a sudden, a thought popped into her head and she blushed crimson. _'Did he just call me…Hinata-_chan_?'_ The Hyuuga heiress was going to be in sweet, heavenly dreams when night fell.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Secluded Training Area, 2 Days later…)

'_It sure pays to have the Hokage in your favor…In that way, I won't be interrupted or spied on by my teammates as I throw myself into training for the next two months.'_ Naruto was stoked to learn some new jutsu as he pulled out the scrolls for Fuuton, Doton and Suiton ninjutsu. After summoning well over one thousand seven hundred clones, he assigned them each a task.

"All right gang, listen up. From this point forward, we're going to hit the ground running and learn these jutsu. It's obvious that our sensei only taught us to climb trees, but this time, we're going to be doing self-help. I want a portion of you to learn how to walk on water in the stream a few meters from this training area. I also want a cluster of three groups for learning wind, earth and water-based techniques.

"For the Fuuton group, pick off some leaves and focus on cutting the leaf with only wind-based chakra. For the Suiton group, you will each get a cloth that I had cut from an old blanket. Your job is to dampen the cloth with water from the atmosphere …that is, if we do have that kind of chakra. As for the Doton group, your job will be to learn how to move the earth with only chakra. Focus your hands into the dirt and pull it up.

"I want one of you to overlook Dosha-chan's training, and I want several of you to look at history books, strategy material and stealth and reconnaissance pamphlets. Are there any questions?"

"Yeah," said one of his clones. "What are _you_ going to be doing?"

"I'll be working on harnessing the **Youkai no Enkou**, since the original can only perform the task. If you need me, I'll be over by that tree meditating. Be sure to dispel a few at a time, due to the mental fatigue. Now disperse!" Everyone complied without question and raced off to their tasks.

XXXXXXXXXX

The training was progressing pretty well for the past five days. The clones were focused on cutting the leaves with chakra only. In short, it was a tough task. The same had gone for those who were trying to dampen the cloths and those that were trying to raise the earth. But all in all, progress was being made. Some of the clones had a few water droplets while more had some bit of earth in their hands before it became unstable.

XXXXXXXXXX

'_Come on…almost there…I can feel the life of the fire…'_

"**That's it, kit. Keep it up…you've almost got it…Focus…Concentrate on the source of life.**"

While the original blond jinchuuriki was focusing his concentration on forming the **Youkai no Enkou**, several things started to occur simultaneously while his eyes remained closed…

XXXXXXXXXX

The occupied clones felt the rumbling and looked over at the original. Their mouths hung open by the sight that they were witnessing. Some of the elf-eared copies dropped their Fuuton scrolls, as well as books regarding stealth and reconnaissance and preparatory material for the written exam portion of the Chuunin trials.

A ten-foot-high plateau of earth erupted from the rumbling ground, underneath the blond demon container. Some atmospheric water vapor condensed and pooled into a moat that was around the high, flat terrain. The same little lake then developed a thin sheet of ice crystals on top of it. Alongside those occurrences, several brown roots shot up from the ground and entwined themselves around the blue-eyed wonder's earthen plateau in a spiral-like fashion. All the while, a small breeze picked up as the blond enigma focused his energy to igniting the spirit-flame. Sweat trickled down his face in extreme concentration as a grapefruit-sized magenta ember flickered into existence into the palm of his right hand.

Feeling as if he accomplished a big step into focusing his essence into fueling the fire, the jinchuuriki huffed out a sigh and leaned back on the tree under which he had been meditating…but was surprised that nothing was there to support him. He quickly straightened up his back and fell onto the "ground" in exhaustion.

The Lord of Bijuu poked into his exhausted host's consciousness and looked around, even though the kit had his eyes shut. His muzzle gaped as his jaw dropped to the bottom of his prison in a cartoon-like fashion. **'Kit, open your eyes…Now!'**

Naruto's eyes fluttered open as he saw…the sky? His eyes shot open in disbelief. _'Where am I? Did I die, Kyuubi-sama?'_

The spirit-fox put a paw to his face and rubbed his muzzle in frustration. **'No kit…Something even **_**better**_** happened…Just look around.'**

He glanced down over the edge of the earth formation and his eyes bugged out of their sockets, seeing his duplicates staring at him, expressing the same "fish-face" expression. _'Eh…Kyuubi-sama…Just what the hell is going on…?'_

'**It would appear that your true power has finally awakened. Do you see the lake, kit?'**

Giving a stunned nod, the youma kitsune continued. **'That would appear to be the ability of the Nidaime Hokage. You were able to draw out water from the atmosphere and pool it into that small moat, with no other source of water at all. Hmm…'** Kyuubi looked through the blond's eyes with his hawk-eye vision. **'I also see that you crystallized some of the water as well…into **_**ice**_**…like Haku-chan.'**

The jinchuuriki's eyes threatened to bulge out of his eye-sockets. How is it possible to use **Hyouton** like that? **'That's not all, kit. You are standing on an earth-plateau that you created by yourself. It would appear that you have a natural affinity for both water and earth. And from feeling the slight breeze while you were concentrating, it may be highly likely that you possess the wind affinity as well, just as I conjectured. That would give an explanation to the ice, which is a mixture of both water and wind.'** When the blond-haired young lad looked around the upland, he was thoroughly stunned by the brown "roots" that encompassed the somewhat high earth formation. **'Well, I haven't seen this ability in over one hundred years.'**

'_Well, what _is_ this ability, Kyuubi-sama…?'_

'**I never thought that I would see **_**Mokuton**_** again after the Shodai Hokage, kid. You would probably have to confront the old man regarding those genealogy scrolls (which you forgot to mention twice already) with the faded writing on them. Maybe he ought to give you insight as to how come you can be able to manipulate and utilize the wood element.'** There was a pregnant pause.** 'Did you by chance mention the **_**Senju**_**?'**

'_H-Hai!'_

'**Well, the founding fathers of this village just so happened to be the Senju clan of the Forest, so maybe it was a family member of the Senju that carried the DNA trait into your family line. I don't see how come they appeared over there in Shiogakure. Of that, kit, I don't know. Anyway, a trip to the old man is in order.'**

'_Right…' _He looked at his accomplishments.

'_Wow…this is_ amazing_!'_

Naruto, beaming from ear to ear, jumped off the highland and landed with graceful ease. He carefully dispelled the clones, picked up the reading materials and high-tailed it to the Hokage's office, with Dosha-chan hopping in his backpack.

XXXXXXXXXX

A strange, white-masked figure in the trees witnessed the entire escapade of the blond's "power manifestation." The figure thought, _'I ought to give this information to Danzou-sama; he must hear about this…the perfect tool for war…'_ and disappeared in a fading afterimage.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Well, there's another chapter down. The same for reviews apply.

Please say something more than just "Great chapter," "Update soon," "Please update soon," "It's interesting," "Interesting," and "Keep up with the good work," just to name several variations. I want to get what you like and/or what you did not like, and how can I come up with a viable solution for it.

As you can tell, Haku-chan has a bit of sex appeal; her smile and kind demeanor makes the hearts of men thump erratically or skip a beat. It even made Sasuke, the guy who doesn't want to feel anything, react to her womanly charms.

Someone was spying on the jinchuuriki and his training methods. Who is this Danzou person? Apparently, several chain-reaction awakenings occurred for our demon container. What lies in store with this brand-new power?

_Jikai… (Next time…) on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Caution to the Wind_

_Naruto: What do you _mean _that I can't use Mokuton yet?_

_DHO: Well, to put it simply, you would attract way too much attention. You already have people after you as it is…_

_Naruto: Like who?_

_DHO: I don't know, but you may find out soon enough._

Romaji guide:

**Doujutsu**: eye technique

**Kage no Sekai**: World of Shadows

**Youjutsu**: dark arts

**Jijii**: old man or grandfather

**Ryou**: monetary unit in the Naruto© world


	8. Caution to the Wind

**A/N**: So far, I'm enjoying writing this piece for you ladies and gentlemen, although someone has brought to my attention that I should speed up the process so you can finally see the Chuunin trials. In that case, some things may be skipped over, but I may reference some of Squad Seven's training schedules, with a particular focus on Naruto's progress. Everyone wants to see our druidic hero learn at least a few things…

From the reviews: I've received over 20,000 hits for my story. For the moment, I am content…very content. For it to be only sixteen or so days-old, I am in awe at how many people would actually look at the story. To boot, I've gotten over the 100-review benchmark. To my fellow readers, I would like to say thank you very much for your insight and thoughts on my story.

I apologize if you are reading anonymously on this site…because I disabled the anonymous reviews on account of a certain flame incident. So, in order to review my story, you _have_ to be registered on this site, so I can give you a rebuttal or a defense to my writing style and why I place things where I want them to be. That's all I have to say about that…

For a select few of you that have left reviews for me, you are almost on the money as to the depth of Sakura's bloodline limit, in particular, **the DragonBard**. I believe that you are the closest that anyone has ever guessed to Sakura's true ability. But still; only time will tell for the moment.

**Dragon Man 180 **and** the DragonBard**, I would like to take this time to thank you for your insight and I will give you commendations for your ideas in this upcoming chapter. However, I gave the scenes a few alterations. I gratefully appreciate your critiques. **FragonDragon**, I will try my best to add to the hilarity of the "Foxy Trio" (Kyuubi, Naruto and Doshaburi), but things may get a bit serious for them shortly.

For those of who are worrying that Sasuke will do something with Haku, need not fret. Sasuke is going to investigate something else for the time being. He's a man of business first and a ladies' man second…that is, if he _is_ willing to open up to any of his fan club. Maybe I ought to let Sasuke have a harem (pauses…screams in horror). No, I won't do that…but there will be one original character that I've created that will be attracted to the raven-haired recluse…

_Sasuke: Why is it that I get stuck with the weird, noisy ones?_

_DHO: Sasuke, would you rather have noisy girls or none at all? I'm throwing you a bone here, Uchiha, since other writers would call you out on your masculinity…along with your sexuality. At least show me some gratitude for once. Besides, there will be a potentially strong original character of mine that you might like…If she is worth your time. And don't worry; she's not some damsel in distress._

_Sasuke: Hn…_

_DHO: I give up…you need to open up a little, Uchiha-_kun_. The girl that I have in mind for you is gorgeous (although she may have her quirks)…that, or you could have Sakura…_

_Sasuke: What…?_

_DHO: Anyway, we're keeping them waiting, so let's do the damn thing…_

_Sasuke: Hn…I get the last line._

_**Chapter Eight**__: Caution to the Wind_

Sarutobi examined another inane document in which he promptly signed it.

'_I am getting too old for this…' _He thought as he glanced up at Hokage Rock, looking at his predecessors and former successor. The door flew open and chaos ensued, which interrupted his wandering thoughts. He turned to look at quite the situation that was unfolding in front of him.

"Hokage-sama!"

"I told you to let go of me! This is important!" A familiar blond loudmouth made his presence known with the chuunin clutching onto his ankle. Dosha-chan was holding onto the ankle of the chuunin holding Naruto.

"That's enough, now let go of him," Sarutobi sternly told the chuunin on watch-duty. "Now what is it, Naruto? There better be a good reason for you to barge in here like that."

The jinchuuriki stuck out his tongue at the chuunin and slammed the door shut soon after the dust-hued canine followed suit.

'…_Even though he may have had physical changes, but he'll still be Naruto…'_ Sarutobi thought with amusement.

"Jiisan, do you mind if you put up a silent barrier? This may be classified," Naruto said with a serious tone in his voice. The Sandaime was amazed by the complete turnaround of his attitude when he addressed him. Placing the silencing technique around the room, he motioned for his honorary grandson to continue.

"Ano…Jijii," Naruto said. "I would like to talk to you about this scroll that I forgot to mention. It's about the genealogy of the Uzumaki. Some of the characters have been washed out, but I noticed that a member of the Senju Clan of the Forest had been in my family tree.

"I was meditating and training for a solid week with Dosha-chan and I have made considerable progress. However, it would appear that I have…awakened several abilities at once."

The Professor raised his eyebrows. "Care to elaborate, Naruto?"

"Yeah, about that…" He scratched behind his head. "It would appear that I have the potential to use Hyouton and Mokuton ninjutsu…"

The pipe from the Sandaime's mouth dropped to the floor as his eyes widened greatly. "M-Mokuton? You can use _Mokuton_ ninjutsu?" _'That's not possible…His power was not supposed to manifest this early…'_

"Uh…yeah, it would appear to be so," the blond mystery grinned. "I was shocked, to say so myself, and I came to ask you about that…"

The Third Great Fire Shadow leaned down to one of the drawers at his desk and pulled out little slips of paper that were the size of index cards. _'I need to test Naruto to see if it is indeed the truth…'_

"Naruto," he started, "even though this is only given to one who has earned the rank of chuunin status, you will have to take this chakra-nature evaluation now. What I have in my hands are strips of paper that came from a chakra-enriched tree. I need for you to take one slip of paper and put a little bit of chakra into it. Most people's chakra naturally leans toward a certain nature, so I need to know for certain about what are your chakra-affinities.

"You read the paper like this: if you're lightning natured, the paper gets crumpled; wind natured, it gets cut in half; fire, it burns; water, it gets wet; and earth, it turns to dust. I need to know this because if what I think might happen, I'll have to tell you something very important now and not later."

Naruto approached the desk and took a slip of paper. He pushed a bit of chakra into the paper, and the results were instantaneous…

As the paper split in half, one side became soaked while the other side crumbled to dust.

"It appears that my assumption was correct, and I was afraid of that," Sarutobi somberly concluded. The old man gave off a weary sigh while his face looked a lot older than usual. "You have an overlay of natural affinities for water, wind and earth. I would say that would come in handy. You can use earth-based jutsu to defend, and vary your techniques from a distance with water and wind-based ninjutsu.

"Adding along with those natural affinities, you easily blended water and earth-chakra as well as water and wind-chakra to make wood and ice elements, respectively, and if you were to put forth more effort, then maybe you could manipulate sand as well. Wind and earth are different in style, so it would be difficult to mix those two forms of chakra." Sarutobi shook his head. "Unfortunately, I can't allow you to learn or use any of your wood-based techniques for now…"

"How come, Jijii!? What do you _mean_ that I can't use Mokuton yet!?" The jinchuuriki was puzzled.

'_How is it that I'm restricted from learning one of my natural gifts?'_

"Because that would expose your true heritage, which is an SS-class secret," the Sandaime curtly answered, garnering a stunned look from Naruto. "Along with that, too many leaders want that particular DNA trait to hone for themselves. Adding that with the Kyuubi will make you Target Number One in the world of shinobi, especially the Akatsuki, even though they aren't active now. Those S-class criminals will come after you sooner or later."

Naruto was taken by surprise that his heritage was a heavily guarded secret. Plus, he did not know that he was a walking target on account of his wood-using abilities…let alone, the Kyuubi. However, a scowl lined his face. "Well, if I was given the training necessary to protect myself, then…" His head sunk on his shoulders as he bashed down on the table, which startled Doshaburi. "Damn it! It's too fucking unfair!"

Sarutobi walked over to a vault hidden in the wall with a genjutsu and pulled out an identical (intact) Uzumaki scroll, along with a scroll with an unknown clan symbol on it. "Naruto, what I'm about to disclose to you is SS-rank in nature and you will be dealt with harshly should you tell this to anyone else not affiliated with Konoha. I will leave it up to you to tell it to whomever that you feel comfortable with telling."

With a surly nod from the blue-eyed wonder, Sarutobi pressed onward. "Long ago, ninja clans fought to gain power and territory. The Senju Clan of the Forest was one of the nomadic warrior tribes that traveled far and wide to rally support into making a hidden village, of which you now know is Konoha. One of the future Shodai Hokage's daughters, one Senju Aki, fell in love with Shiogakure in the Whirlpool Country and decided to stay and learn the many techniques from the people there. With granted permission from my former sensei, she settled into Hidden Tide society.

"She gave birth to an illegitimate son after having relations with a local Uzumaki merchant. That son, whose abilities had to be kept secret at the time, soon married into the Uzumaki clan and had a daughter, one Senju Misaya. Misaya had then married a wealthy bureaucrat named Uzumaki Hiroshi. The two then had a daughter, Uzumaki Kushina, also known as Shiogakure no Uzumaki Aka. She was given that alias on account of her red hair and her fiery temperament, which had been similar to yours.

"Being from a displaced Uzumaki family on account of the situation of the old Shiogakure, she excelled in the ranks of a newly formed Shio bordering the countries of Fire and Waterfall and became an S-ranked kunoichi. It was a good thing that she, along with the rest of her remaining clansmen, aided us during the campaign of the Rock-Leaf War."

He paused and looked out the window, gazing at Hokage Rock, particularly at the Yondaime's rock-bust. "It was during a rendezvous mission with one of my former students that she had met your idol, Namikaze Minato-kun. When they had met, the two fought like cats and dogs, but eventually were inseparable at the hip. They were made for one another. Since they were from separate hidden villages, they decided to keep their marriage away from the public eye as well."

His face took on a grim look as he drove home the point to the shinobi in front of him. "You just so happened to be unluckily born on the day when the Kyuubi had attacked Konoha prior to Minato-kun's announcement of you as Namikaze heir…and I'm sure you can guess where I'm taking this conversation…"

"Wait a minute, Hokage-sama," Naruto said with unprecedented respect and bitter tears that threatened to fall from his face. "Are you telling me that the Yondaime was my father, and my relatives were the Shodai and Nidaime Hokage? Are you telling me that the _living martyr_ of Konoha who is _shunned_ by his village is kin to three of the four Hokage that they loved and admired?

"…How come you knew this already, Jijii!?" growled the jinchuuriki, who had furious tears in his eyes. He clenched his claw-like hands, which drew blood. "And why didn't you tell me!? Maybe if I was trained when I was young, instead of being scorned, then maybe I could've protected myself from my parents' enemies!"

The Sandaime walked over and placed a hand on the blond's shoulder. "I was going to step in and train you, Naruto. Honestly, I would have; however, those uptight bastards of the council didn't want me to associate myself with the aptly named 'demon boy.' To that, I should have told them to wake up and realize that you are the _jailor_ of Kyuubi, not the spirit-fox, himself. I endeavored into convincing the council about your heritage, but it fell on deaf ears. Your mother and father had kept their involvement very covert and it was very difficult to prove with only the two scrolls that are set before you.

"I had then come up with the creed to not have anyone speak of you as the host of the spirit inside of you. And the reason why I call it a spirit is because I know that Kyuubi-sama had good intentions. I saw the pain in its eyes when it was decimating Konoha. I could tell that it was under the control of malice and rage.

"As I regress to the matter-at-hand, there is a picture with her and your father, stashed inside this Uzumaki scroll duplicate that one of the ANBU had picked up during a mission," said the Sandaime. "Inside your father's scroll contains a letter for you. Normally, you shouldn't have been given this information until you were of age, but I think that you need to know as soon as possible if you want to defeat what's ahead of you in this world."

Without a moment's notice, Naruto bit down on his thumb, rubbed the seal and pulled out the picture. His eyes widened greatly.

His mother was beautiful with a big belly, which obviously meant that she was carrying him at the time. She had fiery-red hair and effervescent green eyes and wore a green dress with a yellow shirt. Standing next to her had been the Yondaime Hokage, in jounin attire and his long, white battle coat. He displayed one of the biggest "foxy" smiles that Naruto had ever seen and had his arm wrapped around her shoulder.

"Jiisan…" Naruto whispered behind tears. "Thank you…for letting me know that I was wanted by loving parents."

"Naruto, there is something else that you may need to know," Sarutobi said with heavy sadness and an even more aged visage. Naruto looked up to see his surrogate grandfather's watery eyes. "There is still hope. After the Kyuubi attacked Konoha, Kushina-chan was never found, so there may be a chance that she is, in fact, alive. Much to my dismay, however, I am not certain, since her status still remains 'Missing in Action.'"

Sarutobi looked at his surrogate grandson who had an even more astonished look on his face. "Remember: only speak of this to those that you feel comfortable with, and make sure that none of our enemies catch wind of this."

The blue-eyed genin wiped his tears and gave his surrogate grandfather a small smile. "Okay, Jiisan, you have my solemn word."

"Right," said the Sandaime with a smile. "If you happen to openly display a Mokuton technique, then the council would be trying to play kiss-ass with you and try to get you on good terms." He chuckled to himself. "It's ironic. It is you that has the highest noble birthright of this village, and yet they are not willing to put the past behind them, knowing full and well that you are human as well. People make mistakes, and people are ignorant by nature at the same time…a recipe for disaster…

"Well, I believe that you should get back to training. And just to let you know, you'll still learn Mokuton from my sensei's former scrolls, but you will receive them when I see that you're ready for them or if I'm gone from this world. Is that okay with you, Naruto?"

"That's fine by me, Jiisan. I'll just focus on the three elements and Hyouton with Haku-chan. See ya later, Jiisan." Naruto bowed and called over Doshaburi so they could leave.

'…_The old Naruto would've probably pitched a fit, but I can tell that he has most certainly grown…Or maybe I'm just getting too old…'_ He walked over to his desk, picked up his pipe and filled it with more tobacco.

"Is everything o-okay, Naruto?" asked the dust-colored fox as they were leaving.

"Yeah, Dosha-chan…I'll be fine…I'm just glad that I have a family to call my own." He walked out of the office and into the Konoha streets.

'_It's a slim chance that Okaasan could still be alive…and why would Otousan want me to bear the burden of the village…? I guess that I'll find out about it when I read the letter…'_

His thoughts were on pause when he had seen a lavender blur with indigo hair coming straight for him…

XXXXXXXXXX

(Konoha Public Bath House)

Haku and Hinata decided to spend some time together, albeit their brief encounter. It was then that Haku decided to take a plan of action to break the Hyuuga heiress from her shell.

"So, Hinata-san, what do you think of Naruto-kun?" she asked with a small smile on her face.

Hinata looked up and blushed horribly. "H-He's…a g-good young man. W-Why?"

"Oh, no reason at all, Hinata-san," she calmly stated as she waved her hands. "I thought that maybe that you liked him. I noticed that you were blushing and kept looking away from him."

"…" Hinata continued poking together her forefingers.

"You know that he admires confidence, Hinata-san, and that is the department in which you're lacking. Now tell me, how come you haven't said anything to him yet?"

"Ano…I thought he likes Sakura-san…that's all…" Haku swam over and held together her poking fingers.

"Hinata-san, in this world you have to be aggressive for what you want. You have to fight for the unattainable. If he means that much to you, then I don't see what should impede your progress. It is you that has to make yourself noticeable to Naruto-kun.

"I'll let you dwell on that, but, for the moment, I have to go and see about my instatement among the Konoha ranks. See you later." She climbed out of the public onsen, wrapped a towel around her and went into the dressing room.

XXXXXXXXXX

While in the dressing room, she got into her spare battle kimono and pulled out a scroll. She removed a skimpy outfit which consisted of skin-tight lavender shorts and a complementing tank-top that exposed the midriff. She had then taken Hinata's regular clothes (save for her undergarments) and stashed them in her scroll, only to replace it with the revealing outfit.

'_Phase One, complete,'_ thought the former oinin with a wide smile on her face. She thought that a change of wear would have her acquire Naruto-kun's eyes. She walked off to the Hokage's office regarding her status. _'It probably would have been cleared by now.'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Hinata could not help but reflect on what Haku-neesan had told her. She, like anyone who was naturally in love, would always have that creeping feeling of rejection in the back of his or her mind. Insecurity loomed over her like a shadow cast by the clouds in the sky.

'_What if he doesn't think I'm pretty enough?'_ she thought grimly as she removed herself from the onsen and into the dressing room.

When she had looked at her cubby, her eyes bulged. Desperately panicking and looking for something to wear, she could not help but wear what was placed in her cubby. She was going to pummel whoever stole her clothes with Jyuuken-powered strikes if she found the culprit.

She sprinted out toward the direction of her home, not wanting to be seen, only to literally run into the blond hunk that was her crush.

XXXXXXXXXX

Both Naruto and Hinata thumped on the ground by their rear ends. Rubbing his backside, Naruto yelled without looking at who bumped into him, "Hey, watch where you're going!"

"Oh…I-I'm so sorry," Hinata mumbled softly with eyes closed and bowing.

All of a sudden, they paused when they heard the recognizable voices.

'_That voice…'_ they both thought. _'It sounds…familiar...'_

As Naruto turned his head, Hinata was slowly opening her eyes, and their vision made contact. However, the blond whisker-marks looked at the type of attire that Hinata was wearing while the Hyuuga heiress' face grew to the color of a beet. The jinchuuriki competed in the blushing contest soon after he had seen…curvaceous Hinata.

"H-H-Hinata…chan," stuttered the blond boy as he was holding his nose from potential blood flow. _'Damn it with these perverted thoughts!'_

'_**This is **_**too**_** grand,' **_thought Kyuubi as he chuckled to himself. _**'Now to sit back and watch…'**_

"N-Naruto-k-kun," Hinata stuttered back. They stared awkwardly at one another for about ten minutes.

'_Oh no…this is so awkward…I didn't want Naruto-kun of all people to see me like this. What will he think…? Say something!'_

'_What's g-going on?'_ thought the dirt-colored canine with head tilted. _'I don't get it. And why is Naruto s-sweating so badly?'_

'**That would be the kit's hormones acting up, Dosha-chan,'** Kyuubi said via mental link.

'_W-Who's there?'_ It was not normal for the ocher-hued fox to be hearing voices, much less so in his head.

'**I was the one to establish the link in the first place. You may refer to me as Kyuubi-sama…'**

'_K-K-Kyuubi-sama…As in the l-lord of b-bijuu Kyuubi-sama?'_ the kit thought frighteningly. His eyes widened in horror.

'**Yes, kit, I'm **_**that**_** Kyuubi-sama. And don't be afraid of me. I helped out you as well as the other kit, so you have nothing to fear.'**

'_H-Hai, K-Kyuubi-sama.'_

'_This is awkward,'_ Naruto thought. _'C'mon brain, think of something to start up the conversation…I got it…'_

"Hinata-chan," Naruto said as he dusted off his rear end, "how about you come and train with me in a few days? We could train together before the start of the Chuunin exams, which are on the horizon. So what do you say?"

The Hyuuga heiress, much to her disappointment, could say nothing. She opted for nodding her head, still blushing.

"Great, and I'll see ya soon. And nice outfit, by the way…Later!"

When the foxy duo disappeared from sight, she exhaled a breath that she had unconsciously held. _'I think that went well, I suppose…At least I get to hang out with Naruto-kun…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

As the whisker-marks and his companion ran down the street, a white-masked figure appeared evanescently in front of them.

"Greetings, Uzumaki-san," said the figure behind the white mask. "Our commanding officer was…quite impressed to hear about your abilities. How would you like to take up a position in our 'Ne' division?"

"Sorry, pal," retorted the Jinchuuriki, "but my talents are not for sale under anybody except the Hokage…and my jounin-sensei, Hatake Kakashi-san."

"Well, he knew that you were going to refuse, so I will refer to plan B…" He picked out a tainted kunai and plunged it through the blond's gut. He coughed out blood in the process. "How about you join, now? Either you die here with the poison seeping in your body or we take you back to HQ and give you the antidote. What do you say, Uzumaki-san?"

"Three words…" Naruto said with a smile on his face. "Ready, Dosha-chan?"

"Ready," replied the dust-colored fox as he ran behind the masked figure.

"**Kage Bunshin…**_**Daibakuha!**_" the two roared at the same time, while flashing white. The best Root scout was a dead Root scout…

XXXXXXXXXX

The authentic cloudburst and fox-boy were traveling through the back alleyways when they heard a slight rumble of an explosion.

'_Thank goodness we gave him the slip. Good riddance,'_ thought the blond as they raced to their flat. He sighed and shook his head. _'I can't help but feel remorse for filling those clones with that Phantom Flame, though…'_

His wayward mind focused on Hinata's revealing clothes. _'I think I'm going to need a cold shower when I go back home…But for now…'_ He summoned a shadow clone and asked him to go find a potential wind-user and ask for help. _'I need help with mastering wind.'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Training Ground 13)

"Sakura-san, to what youthful honor do I owe you?" asked Green Beast, Jr., Rock Lee, taijutsu apprentice, who had just split open another training log.

"Well, Lee-kun," began the green-eyed wiz-kid, "I need help with extra chakra reserves for my jutsu, and I was wondering…if you could…teach me two of the Hachimon. You see, I read about them during my research and I…"

Lee's bushy eyebrows soared to his shiny-bowl haircut. "Are you crazy, Sakura-san? I can _never_ teach anyone about the gates…unless I would have to ask Gai-sensei. I must say, Sakura-san, that you are indeed dynamic—"

"Did someone say…DAINAMIKKU ENTORI?" From out of nowhere, an ever bigger man in a green leotard jumped out and flew through the air with a flying kick, landing gracefully in the training ground. It was none other than the self-proclaimed "Kakashi's rival," Maito Gai, pinging smile and all.

"Gai-sensei! What brings you here on this incredibly youthful day?"

"LEE-KUN, I HEARD THAT YOU WANTED TO TEACH YOUTHFUL SAKURA-SAN PART OF THE EIGHT INNER GATES! IS THAT TRUE!?" He asked with booming volume.

"Yes, Gai-sensei," replied Lee with a bow. "She needs extra chakra reserves to power her youthful ninjutsu…"

"Actually, Lee-kun, they're youjutsu and hijutsu…" Sakura corrected.

"Yoshi! May I teach Sakura-san with how to open two of the Eight Inner Gates?"

Gai thought for a contemplative moment. "You have my permission, Lee-kun, seeing as that will not do too much un-youthful damage to the body," he had said quietly while stroking his chin in the process.

"Gai-sensei, you are the greatest!"

"Lee-kun!"

"GAI-SENSEI!" Lee yelled with anime tears streaming down his face.

"LEE!" Gai had done the same thing as they hugged, creating a sunset genjutsu behind them.

All the while, Sakura sweat-dropped by seeing the illusion from hell.

'_This…is so weird…'_

'_**Tell me about it, pinky…Ew…Gross…Shannaro!"**_ Inner Sakura was just as displeased at the boy-on-man body contact as her outer-self.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Uchiha Complex)

Sasuke panted heavily as he bent over, holding his knees. Part of the surrounding earth around him was glassed over on account of intense heat.

'_It looks like Kakashi has some taste in jutsu, after all,'_ surmised the raven-haired genius.

His research on demons at the library had been inconclusive, save for a mythological booklet on legendary creatures. He had yet to read it when Kakashi had come without warning and trained him in high-grade Katon and, strangely enough, some Raiton ninjutsu for the past three days on end. He decided that the research could wait…as well as other matters at-hand.

'_Damn it…why is Haku on my mind, all of a sudden?'_ He thought as he recovered and flashed a few more hand seals.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Sarutobi Complex home, evening)

A panting Naruto clone finally found his way to Sarutobi Asuma, Konoha's legendary chain-smoker and wind-using jounin. He was in the middle of a game of shougi with the local genius and cloud-watcher, Nara Shikamaru.

"It looks like I win again, Sensei. The bill's on you this time," said the lazy genius. Their ministrations were put on hold when they heard a loud voice.

"Oi, Asuma-sensei, can I ask you something?" asked the elf-eared duplicate of the blond wonder as he ran up.

"Oh, hey there, Naruto. What brings you here?" Asuma took a puff of his cigarette. _'He's changed quite a bit…'_

"I found out that one of my three elemental affinities is wind…"

Asuma's cancer-stick fell out of his mouth as his jaw dropped. "Whoa, hold it right there. Did you say _three_ elements? I find that hard to come by…" The bearded chain-smoker was somewhat skeptical about anyone possessing more than one elemental affinity at a time…but it was Naruto, so everyone had to expect the unexpected. "Anyway, so one of your elemental alignments is wind, you say? And you need tips on how to control it, am I right?"

"Yup," said the beaming bunshin.

The cloud-watching shinobi looked over at the blond and asked, "You're learning how to control the nature of chakra?"

"Yes, Shikamaru. What's it to you?"

"You'll need some talent to master that, you know…And besides, you're not even a chuunin yet…" His speech stopped dead in its tracks when the jinchuuriki pointed a finger to his right and a small mound of earth erupted from where he pointed.

"Think I can't handle it, eh?" He gave the genius a wide, fang-toothed smirk.

Shikamaru's eyes widened a bit when he saw _Naruto_ move the ground without breaking a sweat. _'This guy is full of troublesome surprises…'_

"All right," Asuma spoke up, with a new cigarette in his mouth. "I'll teach you how to manipulate the nature of wind, but only if you pay for the next time my team and I go out for yakiniku to celebrate for a completed mission. How's that?"

"You're cheating, Asuma-sensei," retorted a rather peeved Shikamaru.

"Well, if that's all it takes, then I'll do it for my training," the Naruto replica concluded, although he inwardly cringed. _'I know Chouji…His food bill is just as high as mine…'_

"Great, and it looks like we've got a deal." Asuma smiled and pulled out his knuckle-busting trench knives. _'What a sucker…'_

"These are my chakra blades. Both of the blades are made to absorb the chakra nature of the holder. I'll let you hold onto one and have you push your chakra into it."

Grabbing onto the strange knuckle buster, he pushed a bit of the wind-based chakra into the blade with a little bit of effort. For some apparent reason, the blade felt slightly cool in his hands after pushing wind-chakra into the blade.

"Hey, Asuma-sensei," Naruto began, "how come my blade-chakra looks a bit different than yours?" Sure enough, the chakra field around the trench knife was wavering, but held a finite point two inches from the blade, itself.

"Well, first of all, Naruto, you have to focus on your wind-type chakra, since you have two others," answered the chain-smoker. "When you focus on that wind chakra, you've got to imagine splitting the separate chakras apart and grind them together.

"Do it so that the separate chakra fields sharpen one another into fine pieces. The thinner and sharper you make it, the better. Now, for a demonstration…" He quickly scanned the surrounding environs. "I want you to throw your knife with mine, at the same time, into that tree, okay?"

"Ossu!" replied the eager blond. They both reared back and launched the knuckle-busters into the tree. Naruto's blade made it an entire foot into the three. And as for Asuma's blade…

It cut through the tree with little resistance and embedded itself seven inches into the rock behind it. "So, Naruto, what do you think?"

Naruto's mouth flung open in awe. "Sugoi…"

Asuma looked at the pointy-eared genin and continued. "Using the wind chakra can get pretty dangerous. I was only holding back. Were it the case that I had been trying, then my blade would've gone through that rock…"

Naruto's eyes bugged out. "_Say what!?_"

"So, here's the lesson for you, Naruto. In a battle of equal caliber between two shinobi, the one with the sharpest tool would win. The wind element has the strongest offensive power for both close- and mid-range battles.

"Take what you know and apply it, and if you come across any trouble at all, then feel free to drop by anytime. But you're still held responsible for barbecue, though."

"Gotcha! Thanks a lot!" Naruto formed his trademark cross-shaped hand seal and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

'_That was a shadow clone…?'_ Shikamaru shook his head. _'What a troublesome guy…' _He glanced over at his jounin-sensei. _'At least Asuma-sensei can't wiggle his way out of paying for barbecue.'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Naruto's flat, late evening)

Naruto was glancing over at the letter left from his father when the clone dispelled and gave him information regarding how to manipulate the wind element. It turned out that he was stuck in a rock and a hard place when it came to how to seal Kyuubi.

Much to Naruto's dismay, all other possible means for detaining the King of Youkai proved futile, and Naruto had been the last resort, since he obviously could not ask any of the villagers' children to act as the spiritualist medium, or even themselves for that matter. People would think that you were crazy if you asked around for someone to harbor a ten-thousand-year-old spirit in your stomach. Plus, it came down to one final question: Why would _you_ have _someone else_ make the ultimate sacrifice, knowing that _you_ were unable to do so?

It also stated in the letter that his mother had been taken to the hospital after the abrupt C-section on the field of battle, and he neither had a chance to see her again nor to tell her how much he loved her.

That brought a few more tears from the jinchuuriki as he rolled up the letter and stashed it in a safe-box underneath his bed, along with the scroll that he had received from Sarutobi. _'There's still hope…'_

When he bent down, he wafted Doshaburi's scent. He certainly needed a scrub-down in the morning after he got up. "Good night, Dosha-chan," he whispered to his dust-hued kit.

As he rolled over in his bed, he thought about what the future might bring. _'Two-and-a-half weeks until the Chuunin exams…I hope that I'm ready by then…'_ Closing his eyes, he drifted into dreamland…only to be pulled into the fox's den that was Kyuubi's dungeon.

"_What's up now, Kyuubi-sama?"_ asked the blond wonder who rubbed his backside from the descent.

"**Kid, how has your progress been with training? And how's the kit taking to my chakra?"**

"_He's getting more and more accustomed to it; however, his coat is starting to…redden a bit."_

"**I see…It's only a minor side effect, though. There's no need to worry over it. For now, I want you to use your chakra to commune with him mentally. That is my next task for you, before you dream of two of your…**_**important**_** people."** The Youkai King gave a perverted giggle.

Naruto's shoulders and ears drooped as he sighed in defeat. _'Why is it that I'm doomed to be stuck with perverted sensei…?'_ This was going to be a _long_ night for the fox-boy.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N**:Okay, I believe that is another chapter down, and I had to get some of that stuff out of the way, because frankly, if Naruto has an important incentive to get stronger, then this would be it.

He already knows of his heritage, and I thought it was a clever idea, if I say so myself, to be descendants of two Hokage and the son of one through a roundabout lineage. I'm not sure if anyone else had come up with that idea, so I will call it my own.

I've gotten an e-mail regarding that I should delve into more research into the role and religion of the Druids. I will take that into consideration when I write in one of my OC in Part II. He will be (hopefully) the embodiment of druidic shamanism.

As for the created ninjutsu, they will stay as is, even though I have thought on a limb here. But, in all honesty, it took weeks on end to come up with a solid list of jutsu to call my own, especially for my big surprise…but as usual, the good stuff will happen in Part III.

Before you start to peg me on having Sakura meet Rock Lee and Gai prematurely, know this...this is "fiction" and if I want to deviate a bit from the canon storyline, then I will, and there is no crime in that. There is also a valid reason to back up my claims for having the bookworm meet the taijutsu experts in the early going.

Have you ever heard of background research? Sakura is the wiz-kid of her graduating class, so of course she would do some "brushing up" for the time being, of which I gladly omitted, due to the fact that I would find it taxing to explain everything before the pieces fall into place. That's enough about my soap box for now...

For the next chapter, I will promise to speed things up. And I don't make promises unless I intend to keep them.

_Jikai… (Next time…) on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Crunch Time! Road to the Exams…_

_Naruto: I think that I'll be as ready as I'll ever be…_

_DHO: That's the spirit, Naruto, and I take it that your dream went well…?_

_Naruto: …I would prefer not to answer about that…_

Romaji guide:

**Shiogakure no Uzumaki Aka**: Red Eddy of the Hidden Tide (eddy is synonymous with "whirlpool," by the way); nickname for Uzumaki Kushina

**Okaasan**: mother

**Otousan**: father

**Jyuuken** or **Juuken**: Gentle Fist; taijutsu style of the Hyuuga Clan

**Ne**: "root"; branch division of ANBU, under the control of Danzou

**Kage Bunshin Daibakuha**: Shadow Clone Great Explosion (**Phantom Flame-style**): A-rank offensive close-range ninjutsu; upgraded shadow clones explode on account of critical chakra input; explosion attained depends on the energy input (based off **Bunshin Daibakuha**, or **Clone Great Explosion**)

**Youjutsu**: dark arts

**Dainamikku Entori**: Dynamic Entry

**Hachimon**: lit. "Eight Gates"; referencing the Eight Inner Gates

**Yakiniku**: barbecue; literally, 'grilled meat'

**Sugoi**: amazing


	9. Crunch Time! Road to the Exams

**A/N**: Hello to you all and I hope that you've been well. I apologize for the late update.

First of all, allow me to retort. I would like to say that in my story, several characters have been met prematurely, such as Rock Lee from Team Gai. Sakura has done some behind-the-scenes research, so that would explain why Sakura found Lee in the first place. I decided to omit what has been going on in the background, since I don't want to reveal too many cards on the table. That and the fact that I want to speed things up to the Chuunin trials.

Word from the Reviews:

I see that some of the comments are getting a bit too short. Once again, I would like to reiterate this. Please, aside from the "update soon" comments and the like, add more, such as what you liked, what you found interesting, what didn't you like, what kinds of improvements can be made, et cetera. And please, don't be a smart-aleck about it. I'm trying to see what I can do to improve on this story.

I would like to add that, if you're a bit confused about the family tree of Naruto, then allow me to clarify for you. Tsunade and Naruto are _very_ distant cousins in this fic (I think fourth-cousins, three times removed, or something along the lines of that). He is the son of the Yondaime, the great-great-great grandson of the Shodai and the great-great-great-great-nephew of the Nidaime.

To those that were wondering about how come Naruto was able to have an earth affinity…Look back at the last chapter and read Sarutobi's explanation. I made it somewhat short, sweet and straightforward. If he doesn't have an earth affinity, then it would be impossible to learn and utilize the Mokuton ninjutsu. It heavily relies on the fluid flexibility of water-chakra and the rigid durability of earth-chakra, and I hope that makes sense.

Well, let's go ahead and speed things up a bit…And some of you got your wish…This chapter is longer than my other chapters.

_**Chapter Nine**__: Crunch Time! Road to the Exams_

Squad Seven had met up at the bridge the next morning. Sakura arrived at the earliest time. A few minutes later, Sasuke arrived on the scene, downing a few tomatoes in the process.

"Morning, Sasuke-kun," she said with a smile, which led to a rolling-eye gesture from her inner-self.

"Hn," the raven-haired prodigy said while polishing off another tomato from his produce bag.

Five minutes later, Naruto arrived with Doshaburi in tow, albeit a bit dazed and groggy, almost as if he did not get much sleep or had seen an eye-opener in the morning. Evidently, it was the latter.

"Ohayo, Naruto," Sakura said with a cheery (genuine) smile on her face. Her smile faltered as she noticed the something was not right with her blond enigma of a teammate. "What's the matter with you? You look like that you've seen a ghost or something."

The blond wonder's ears perked up as he looked at his pink-haired teammate with a hint of surprise, seeing that Sakura hardly ever asked him what was wrong. Naruto did not want any of his teammates to find out that he had forgotten that he had a houseguest and just so happened to sleepily walk into the bathroom and catch sight of her bare essentials…

_(Flashback)_

_He yawned as soon as he slapped at the alarm clock to disable it. "Ugh…need to go to the bathroom…"_

_Throwing over the covers, the blue-eyed fox-boy walked out of his room and down the hall with sleepy eyes. He had noticed that the light in the bathroom was already on behind the closed door._

'I thought I turned off that light,' _he thought as he inched closer to the door. Kyuubi was debating whether or not to alert the kit about what was behind that door. He decided to kick back and ride out the unfolding scene in front of him._

'**I should tell him that Haku-chan lives here,' **_the lord of bijuu pondered to himself. _**'Nah, I'll let him figure it out on his own. Besides, the kit isn't all that bright come morning time…'**

_With a turn of the knob, the door gave way and Naruto was staring at the exposed backside of the ice-using femme fatale, who was drying off her hair with a towel in front of the mirror. Her skin was nigh-flawless in its creamy complexion. His blush grew to the area of his cheeks as he turned around to avoid staring._

'Okay, let me think. Who the hell is in my house? Let's see…dark hair…Is there anybody that I know that has dark hair?' _Immediately, the gears were turning in his head and his eyes greatly widened at the realization. _'Oh…shit…' _His tenant inwardly bawled in laughter. Kyuubi was amazed as to how many awkward situations that his host would come across in the future. Maybe being stuck with the kit for a lifetime would be an enjoyable experience after all._

_Haku noticed that the door was open and suddenly flung the towel in front of her. She turned to the blond wonder with a furious crimson blush that lit up her face._

"_N-Naruto-kun, what the hell do you think you're doing!?" she roared as he turned around._

"_H-H-Haku-chan," said Naruto as he was waving his hands in defense, trying to stay focused on her eyes. "Th-This was a s-serious mistake! I totally forgot that you were staying with me! P-Please don't bash me over the head like Sakura!"_

_With a calming blush on her cheeks, she gave the town savior a gaze that was much unknown to him. She was admiring the toned physique of the blue-eyed wonder. _'I'll say that he has an amazing body…I guess I ought to teach him a lesson then.'

"_No, I won't bash you over the head, but…" She lowered the towel a bit to expose more of her porcelain skin while licking her lips in a jokingly sensuous fashion. "I could show you something that'll be worth your while…"_

_Naruto's face paled and he flew back into the hallway, with blood spewing forth from his nostrils like a steam geyser. He landed in an unceremonious heap in a dizzy-eyed fashion. _'Why does it always have to be me…?'

_The dark-haired ice-mistress smirked. "Lesson One, learn how to knock from now on, Naruto-kun." Her eyes widened a bit in realization. "Oh, that reminds me…I had no idea that you also had the Hyouton ability. I was told by Hokage-sama that I'll be training you a bit later. Now, if you don't mind, I need to finish up in the bathroom." She closed the door with that damned smile on her face…_

_(End Flashback)_

To say that the jinchuuriki was having an awkward morning was an understatement. "Not enough sleep," was all the blond wonder could say.

It was not until an hour later that the Cyclopean elite arrived on the bridge in a puff of smoke.

"Hey, guys," he started, displaying his patented eye-smile. "Sorry I'm late, and I do have a good reason for it."

Four question marks were displayed over Squad Seven, with a scrutinizing look at their jounin-sensei. Kakashi reached into his pockets and pulled out three applications.

"I just so happened to select you three to compete in the Chuunin selection examinations," began the one-eyed Copy-Ninja. His charges looked at him in their kid-like stupor. "This is all voluntary, by the way. If you do accept, then fill out the application form and take it to Room 301 at the Academy in two weeks time. Now, are there any questions, comments or concerns?"

"Uh…Kakashi-sensei," Naruto spoke up and looked around to see if no one else was around, "I need to tell you something with regards to my…abilities. It turns out that there was more than just the 'bloodline limit' that you know about."

Kakashi's eye suddenly held a bit of interest. _'He has _more _than the Kyuubi's abilities? This kid is full of surprises.'_

"Okay, Naruto. Care to clarify?"

Naruto sighed and began. "I found out while training that my natural abilities manifested at once. It's true that I can easily learn water, wind and earth-based jutsu because I found out that I had an affinity for all three."

Both Sasuke and Sakura turned saucer-like eyes to the blond enigma and thought the same thing: _'It's always one surprise after another when it comes to you, Naruto…'_

"It also turns out that due to the overlay of my elemental affinities, I can use two of them at a time in tandem to form something new…"

The Copy-Ninja hopped off the overhang of the bridge and looked at Naruto with disbelief. He was right; he was one of, if not, the most surprising ninja that he has ever met. "Are you telling me that you can use…?"

"Yes, Sensei, I can use it," interrupted the blond wonder. "I can utilize the Hyouton abilities like Haku-chan…"

"Naruto, I'm not talking about the Hyouton ability. I'm talking about the _other_ dual-element chakra." Kakashi wanted to get to the _true_ ability, of which he had read only in legend.

The fox-boy sighed in defeat. He muttered, "Fine, but what you see here will not be discussed at all, got it?" With a collective group nod, he closed his eyes and held his hands together in a Mi hand seal—the snake seal, focusing the earth-chakra in his right hand and water-chakra in his left. The earth around the bridge rumbled a bit before several wooden blocks shot up from the ground, leaving his two teammates even more bemused.

Grunting due to the strain, he began his explanation. "Jijii didn't want me to learn Mokuton from Shodai-sama's scrolls until he thinks that I'm ready or if he passes on. If I use it publicly, especially in the presence of those snooty council bastards, then they'll probably treat me like what they would've done with Haku-chan, if not for…my _other_ problem, Kakashi-sensei. That would make me, in Jijii's words, the 'Number One Target in the world of shinobi,' were I to use this ability without caution."

The raven-haired genius was surprised that the dobe, out of all the shinobi, had mysterious forms of power to utilize at his disposal. Even though he had his stoic game-face, the dark-eyed Uchiha was inwardly envious of the fact that _Naruto_ would eventually acquire fine-tuned abilities that even the _Sharingan_ could not copy, since they were inherited traits. He was definitely the rival that could match up to him in a fight…or might even surpass him, but he did not want to admit that. The dobe had a long way to go from the status of a diamond-in-the-rough 'dead last' to a legend among ninja. _'I still haven't figured out that…other bloodline yet, but I will figure it out soon, dobe. Just you wait…Eventually, I'll pick apart what you're hiding…'_

Sakura was just as surprised as Sasuke-kun, and her face had shown for it. She had no idea that the pointy-eared boy that was her teammate could potentially kick both of his teammates' asses in the realm of ninjutsu, on account of having three natural affinities and two (possibly three) more from a blend of different types of dual-element chakra. Adding that with his other 'mysterious bloodline,' her respect for the oddball soared greatly. _'Remind me to never anger him…He just might create an actual storm in Konoha if he isn't careful.'_

'_**Sure thing, pinky…Hell yeah! I can't wait to see what Naruto-senpai can really do…Shannaro! We'll kick ass in the exams!'**_ Inner Sakura yelled while holding out a fist in the air. Sakura could not help but agree with her dark counterpart…well, disregarding the whole superior-inferior relationship, at least.

"Well, it looks like that all of my charges have bloodline abilities." Kakashi chuckled to himself. "It looks like that I won another bet, seeing that I lucked out this time."

"Gambling is wrong, you know? As well as perversion, Sensei," retorted the blond genin with a slight scowl. "Anyway, I take it that you made a bet with the other jounin-sensei? What was the wager, if you don't mind telling us?"

Somewhat astounded by the sudden question, the Copy-Ninja answered. "Well, Maito Gai-san, the leading taijutsu expert, had a betting pool going on to see if all three of our charges possessed a kekkai genkai, and that excluded family-clan techniques. Since I won the bet, I won't have to worry about wearing Gai-san's tacky leotards during the Chuunin exams…"

Sakura and her Inner Persona cringed ever-so slightly when he had mentioned the fashion atrocity that was the green spandex. Getting over her initial shock from the Green Beast Duo, they actually knew their subject of concentration _extremely_ well.

"Anyway, that changes everything with regards to how your teamwork will fare. I'll give you another bell test to see if you're ready, which will be three days prior to the exam. The same stipulations will apply: if you don't come at me with the intent to kill, then you will not get the bells."

The gang groaned, save Doshaburi, who was confused about the assessment.

"N-Naruto, what's this b-bell test?" asked the inquisitive fox cub.

"It works like this, Dosha-chan," Sakura said, beating Naruto to the punch. "In this test, we'll have to work as a team to get two bells from Kakashi-sensei. The test itself is designed to fool greenhorn genin; with only two bells, that would pit them against one another and cause conflict in the team. We found out the meaning of teamwork the hard way when we had taken the bell test the first time." Sasuke and Naruto had a nostalgic look upon their faces while Doshaburi nodded in comprehension.

"Oh, that reminds me…" the one-eyed jounin realized. "We still have a few D-ranked missions to complete before midday."

With another collective group groan, they proceeded on to the boring D-rank chores…er, missions.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Midday)

Walking in the direction of the Hyuuga compound, Naruto praised his fox cub via mental connection. He was getting accustomed to commune with the kit so he would not look out of place if had spoken aloud. He did not want to get even more awkward stares when he was talking with a canine that could speak in return.

'_I think that's the last time that Tora will ever run away. Ain't that right, Dosha-chan?'_ the blond asked. _'I think that you scared that fat kitty a bit too much.'_

'_I tried m-my best, N-Naruto,'_ replied the ocher-hued fox kit with his own foxy grin on his face.

Approaching the gates of the compound, two Branch House members halted the blond nuisance. "To what business do you have with the Hyuuga?" asked one of the surly guards with a permanent scowl on his face.

"Is Hinata-chan around? I said that I would train with her," answered the fox-boy. _'And what's with the attitude…? I bet it's just a stick in the ass…'_ Naruto chuckled along with his tenant.

"Just one moment. I'll notify Hinata-sama of your presence." After a few minutes, the stiff guard returned. "Follow me, Uzumaki-san." With a confirming nod, fox and fox-boy walked through the many corridors of the sprawling mansion that was the Hyuuga compound. Their quasi-journey led to a koi pond and a green garden with a vibrant array of flora. In the center of the field was a meditating Hinata, wearing a traditional purple kimono.

The blond wonder crept up in a fox-like manner and tapped her on the shoulder, which made the Hyuuga heiress jump in surprise and out of her peaceful trance.

"Oh, h-hi, Naruto-kun," Hinata said sweetly as Dosha-chan cuddled in her lap.

"You know, even though you stutter, your voice sounds angelic, Hinata-chan," he inadvertently said. The look on his face was worth a thousand words. _'Did I say that out loud? What the hell!?'_

'**Indeed you did, boy,' **answered the bijuu lord while picking his claws and laughing. **'Heh…heh…'**

Schooling his facial expression, he continued. "Um…Hinata-chan, I was wondering if you're ready to train with me, if that's okay with you."

Hinata gave her crush a blushing smile. "I'd l-love to, Naruto-kun."

"Okay," said the grinning fox-boy, who had just pulled a slip of chakra paper from his back pocket. "First, I want to test out your elemental affinity, although you aren't a Chuunin yet. I want you to channel some chakra into this paper, and I can tell you of what nature of chakra you possess."

"A-All right, Naruto-kun," she said in a soft-spoken tone. The Hyuuga heiress poured her chakra into the paper and greatly drenched it.

"Interesting…" He stroked his chin as if he were an intellectual scholar. "Since you soaked the paper, my guess is that your chakra nature strongly leans toward water. I find that fascinating because we can train together." He gave another foxy smile to the cute, shy girl.

"Eh?" she asked with a bit of confusion…and a small blush on her face. "What do you mean, Naruto-kun?" _'Wow…I didn't stutter that time…'_

"My chakra natures are wind, water and earth," answered the fox-boy in a serious manner, which caused the Hyuuga heiress' eyes to double in size. "Wind is almost close to water in a way, since it flows in currents as well. We can train together and focus on adding some ninjutsu into your repertoire…"

"Uh…N-Naruto-kun," Hinata spoke up while poking together her index fingers. "I-I'm n-not allowed to…to l-learn ninjutsu…o-only Juuken taijutsu."

"Bah, that's nonsense, Hinata-chan," scoffed the blond-haired genin. "I think that you should learn something else besides closing up tenketsu." He leaned down to her ear and began to whisper. "Besides, what your arrogant-ass father won't know won't hurt him, am I right? It can be our…dirty little secret…" Hinata's blush blew to high proportions when he leaned in close to her.

"Oh my…" She appeared to have invented a new shade of red.

Apparently, he had caught wind that Hinata was being mistreated and thrown to the side like an old toy within her own home, and he was going to make sure that she, one of his newfound 'precious people,' could stand with her head held up high with the lesson plan that he had in store for her.

"I offhandedly heard from Sakura earlier today that she was training with taijutsu masters. From what she had told me, part of the Eight Inner Gates would allow you to reopen closed tenketsu. I'm not sure if that'll work, since it's still theory, but I know for a fact that lightning-natured shinobi (_'Along with jinchuuriki,'_ he mentally added) can counter your Gentle Fist style, so it won't hurt to have backup plans and last-resort techniques." He moved away from her ear.

He looked into her lavender-tinted eyes, which caused her to turn an even darker shade of crimson, if that were even possible. "Remember these choice words, my friend: we both have to prove to everybody that we're not weak. That and the fact is that I care about you, just like all of the people that I hold dear to me. You're sweet and kind-hearted, and no one should have to receive that crock of bull from your heartless father, or from your prudish clan. Now let's get going, shall we?"

"Y-yes," answered the befuddled, reserved Hyuuga heiress. She was surprised of the fact that her crush had actually told her that he cared about her. All of a sudden, she realized that she was not in proper training attire. "I h-have to change first, Naruto-kun…I can't train looking like this…"

After about fifteen minutes, Hinata walked out of her room and down to the garden. When Naruto caught a look at what she was wearing, he immediately froze. She had gone without her bulky jacket and opted for a black T-shirt and tight-fitting lavender pants. It was very clear to see that Hinata was…more developed in her age group than most girls. When she saw Naruto's gaze, she looked away a bit and poked together her fingers.

'_This may be one…awkward day…'_ thought the blushing, elf-eared fox-boy as he gathered his senses again to head off to find the person that Sakura had recommended.

XXXXXXXXXX

Naruto, Doshaburi, Hinata, and Sasuke, who had just been walking by at the time, found an abandoned dojo near the Ninja Academy. It was there that they had heard huffing and puffing sounds coming from inside. The quartet peered in and looked at a fast flurry of whirlwind kicks and graceful movements.

'_Let's see,' _Naruto thought for a moment as he took note of the green blur in front of him. _'Shiny bowl haircut…large, freaky eyebrows…green spandex…There's no doubt about it. That's him, all right.'_

The blond genin slid the door to the side as the fast-moving shinobi came to a grinding halt.

"Greetings. I am Rock Lee. To what service do I owe you…?" His gaze moved immediately to the raven-haired genius. "I believe that I have heard of your clan before…Uchiha Sasuke-kun."

Maintaining his hardened gaze, the raven-haired Sharingan-user glared at the weirdo in the leotard. "So, you already know my name. I must say that I'm amused."

"Allow me to propose this challenge to you, Uchiha. Let us fight to see which of us is more superior…one who was gifted with natural talent from birth, or one who dedicates his life to hard work, day in and day out." Lee had taken his Iron Fist taijutsu stance.

"Eh, before you fight, Lee-san," Naruto interrupted, "I come bearing a favor if you don't mind…that is, after your spar with the bastard here." That comment earned a dagger-like glare from Sasuke, even though Naruto ignored it. Lee nodded in accordance.

"As you wish, but I know not of your names. May I ask who are you?" Lee politely asked.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto, this is my nin-ken, Doshaburi, and this is my friend, Hyuuga Hinata-chan," the blond said with a smile. By the mention of the surname 'Hyuuga,' Lee's eyes gained a cold, rock-hard appearance. Looking at the gaze, Naruto quickly commented. "B-Before you jump to conclusions, Lee-san, Hinata-chan's in the same boat as you and me. That and she's the nicest Hyuuga who doesn't act like a pompous ass." He held onto Hinata's shoulders as she giggled. The taijutsu expert's gaze softened, and the partial tension in the air dissipated.

"Very well," Lee said and turned back to the Uchiha prodigy. "But first of all, I would like to see how I fare against this year's number-one rookie. I will give you one warning, Uchiha: you will not win."

The comment stroked the avenger's ego and he charged full-on, with a flaring Sharingan.

The battle was brief; with an incredible burst of speed, Lee picked apart Sasuke's taijutsu and broke through all of his defenses. The spandex-wearing shinobi was about to perform a variation of one of his aerial kinjutsu when a talking turtle-summon and his equally-thick-browed jounin-sensei, Maito Gai, emerged on the scene and berated the boy for showing off his moves, which was not how it should be in the world of shinobi. As Lee was wrapping up his hands in the undone bandages, Naruto took special note of the condition of his hands.

"Hey, check out his hands. They're completely bruised and battered," Naruto perceptively pointed out. "That means he must train rigorously…more so than any of us." He smiled and turned to his foxy comrade and Hinata. "It looks like I found the perfect instructor for you as it is, and maybe I could learn a thing or two from him."

When Sasuke emerged from his daze, he wondered how the competition was going to be for the start of the Chuunin exams, and if there were any that would be in the same class as the green weirdo, then he would have his work cut out for him. It was going to be interesting…

"I'm going to go and train. Later," commented the raven-haired avenger as he walked off.

When Sasuke took off, a bad feeling dropped in the pit of the blond wonder's stomach. He shook his head. _'Something tells me that he just copied Lee's technique without him knowing…'_

"Lee-san, that was incredible!" shouted the fox cub without stuttering.

The spandex-wearing splendid ninja looked at the furry kit with amusement. "I see that you have a talking ninja-hound, Naruto-kun. I must say that I am thoroughly impressed with its youthful exuberance. So, you wish to train with me?"

"We do, Lee-san," Naruto said, politely bowing. "We were referred by Sakura to see you. Your training would greatly benefit both Hinata-chan and me. Well, I know that my taijutsu needs a bit more fine-tuning, so that's why I came here. As for Hinata-chan, her Juuken is solid, but I would like for her to have extra reserves of chakra potential."

"Very well, Naruto-kun, Hinata-san. Let us begin. We will start by running around Konoha one hundred times with these." He smiled and pulled out two sets of leg weights from out of nowhere while the elf-eared genin and the Hyuuga heiress sweat-dropped. Something in the pit of their stomachs told them that it was going to be utter hell for the next few hours.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Three hours later…)

And pure hell it was. Although Naruto had superhuman stamina, there was no way that he was going to match that speed in a long time. The dusty-hued kit had no room for complaints, seeing that all he did was climb the walls and ceiling of the dojo with chakra and leg weights. Hinata was not faring any better as they proceeded to the training area to meet up with Haku.

"Hey there, Naruto-kun," the ice-user said with a slightly seductive smile on her face. Naruto picked up on the hidden undercurrent and blushed, knowing that he was not going to get that disturbing image from out of his head, even if she was in her new standard-issue attire. "Good day to you, Hinata-chan." She turned and bowed. "What brings you here? I thought that I was only going to be training Naruto-kun…"

"Yeah, about that, Haku-chan," the blond spoke up as he nervously scratched behind his head. "I was wondering if we could practice how to manipulate our water-natured chakra. It turned out that Hinata-chan has a strong affinity for water-based ninjutsu."

'_Hmm…I guess that this is unofficially Phase Two, then,' _Haku thought as she looked at the potentially cute couple-in-the-making. "Hinata-chan, I can tell that you have very good chakra control; however your reserves are a bit low. So this is what I'll do. Naruto-kun, I will leave it up to you to train Hinata for a few hours, and I'll begin your lessons a bit later. How does that sound?" The fox-boy nodded and pulled Hinata over to the nearby lake in the training area.

"Hinata-chan, I have just the solution for you." He used a bit of the wind-chakra in his claws to slice off a branch above them. Then, he plucked three leaves from the branch and laid it aside. "While you water-walk, I want you to focus on keeping these leaves on your head with just only chakra. This will greatly increase your chakra potential and hidden reserves as well."

From his knapsack he pulled out two cloths. He gave a dry cloth to Hinata while he dampened his cloth with his water-chakra. The shy Hyuuga's eyes widened. "This is another exercise that will help you draw out your water-natured chakra. In order to do this, I need for you to try to dampen that cloth with the chakra that you may draw from only your reserves. I'll tell you that recomposing your chakra into water will be rather difficult, and if you feel as if you're struggling, feel free to ask me or Haku-chan, okay?"

The Hyuuga heiress nodded with newly found confidence, and hoped to Kami-sama that her brain would not overload on the information that she picked up. She still could not believe that she was being tutored by her idol and crush for the next week. _'I will not fail you, Naruto-kun…Haku-neesan,'_ she thought to herself.

"I'll leave a shadow clone and Dosha-chan with you, in case if you need anything. I'll get back with you and check on your progress." He summoned forth a shadow clone and ran back to the ice-using kunoichi.

"Okay, Haku-chan, Hinata-chan has her regimen set up. So how are we going to manipulate ice?" asked the boy with astounding wonder.

"Well, this is going to be a different training schedule, Naruto-kun," Haku answered. "When you have your three elements that you can control, it's not very difficult to use them separately. But it's a totally different story when it comes to using two of them together. Such is the case with using abilities in the Hyouton-class of ninjutsu; the theory behind it all is very complex.

"I've done research on the ability and developed several theories on the subject matter, myself. To provide evidence that this is going to be tricky, I will show you this scroll of mine." The dark-haired young lady pulled out a scroll with an iceberg caricature on it. She giggled. "I drew the insignia on the scroll as well."

Naruto glanced at the scroll and read the theories and calculations to the minutest detail. He was intrigued, but mumbo-jumbo concepts would not deter the blond from learning and mastering ice-based chakra. After he read the scroll, he handed it back to the ice-user and began flashing through hand seals. Groundwater and atmospheric moisture condensed on the very spot that Naruto was standing after ending on the Inu seal.

"**Suiton: Kyuusui no Jutsu**!" cried out the elf-eared genin. The condensed water swirled around the blond in a ring-like fashion when he turned to the gaping ice-user. "Haku-chan, do you have a bucket or a water pail, by any chance? I would need this water to help me with the ice training."

Haku was stunned by the sheer volume of water that was swishing around the village hero. Never had she been able to draw on that much water on her first go of self-training. Quickly concealing her shocked face, she summoned forth a large wooden tub from one of her storage scrolls, which earned her a shocked look from the blond with raised eyebrows. "Here you are, Naruto-kun."

After he moved the water into the large container of water, he pointed at the tub in skepticism and asked, "Eh…Haku-chan, why is it that you lug around a tub in that storage scroll? I know it's not in my right to ask and all, but…I was just curious."

"That would be from my travels…as well as training," she replied with a smile, not at all offended by his inquiry. She had then retaliated with a question of her own. "Naruto-kun, how is it that you were able to draw out _that_ much water?"

"Well," he whispered as he was looking around, seeing no one else, "Jijii told me that my ancestor and relative were the Shodai and Nidaime Hokage, respectively, two very powerful shinobi who had life-giving abilities. Shodai-ossan possessed the Mokuton ability, which allowed him to create forests with chakra alone. Nidaime-ossan, Shodai-ossan's brother, had a strong affinity for water-based techniques, along with those that have lived in Shiogakure. He was even able use Suiton ninjutsu without a water source. I guess you could say that I received a blend of both abilities." Haku was stunned, and the wide-eyed look showed for it. "I don't know if I inherited the wind-element chakra from Otousan, but having it must've come about as an accidental blessing."

The dark-haired ice-mistress had even wider eyes directed at the blond wonder. "Your father…?"

"Yeah," whispered Naruto. "He was the Yondaime, the one who sealed Kyuubi-sama inside of me, and the reason why I'm telling you this is because you already know about my status as a jinchuuriki. You might as well know the entire story, or at least what I do know of it. That, and I trust you wholeheartedly, knowing that you can keep secrets, right?"

"Your secret is always safe with me, Naruto-kun," said Haku with a reassuring smile. "Now, let's get started with the training…"

XXXXXXXXXX

The twilight landscape of Konoha displayed a brilliant array of hues and warm tones. Some stars had yet to appear in the darkening skies when Naruto completed his lesson on how to freeze water, with the aid of his shadow clones.

"Okay, Naruto-kun, you picked up on it rather quickly, and I think that should be all for today," Haku said. "There's no need in burning yourself out." She stood up and stretched, which made Naruto look away when she arched her back. "I'll meet you back at the flat, and I'll cook a hearty meal for you as well. Ask Hinata-chan as well if she would like some dinner." After she walked off in the direction of his apartment, a flash of realization crossed his face.

As the images from her training flooded through his brain, Naruto had then taken note that Hinata-chan never asked for any advice or aid when his clone was in attendance. He smiled at the fact that she had gotten the cloth considerably damp and was able to keep two of the three leaves on her head.

'_All that in five hours…? Hinata-chan, you astound me…'_ He made a note that he should reward her for her great achievements. Besides, she hardly received praise, so treating her to lunch or dinner would be well-deserved.

As he walked over to where she was training, Hinata was fast asleep under a tree with Dosha-chan in her lap.

'_Poor girl must be exhausted…'_ He chuckled inwardly and picked up the heavy, wet, dripping cloth that was beside her. _'Oh yeah, a reward is definitely in order for her…She's earned it…'_ His thoughts were interrupted when the Hyuuga heiress was mumbling in her sleep between breaths. Fortunately, due to his sensitive hearing, he was able to pick up her words…

"Arigatou…Naruto-kun…for…helping me change…to be…a better person…" She turned her head to the right side and smiled in her dreams. "…I w-want…for you…to r-recognize me…because…" The next words shocked Naruto to the core of his being…

"…I…like you…" The words were silenced by soft, soothing breaths.

The fox-boy's pointy ears shot up in immediate reaction. Naruto felt a bit awkward by hearing an unsuspected confession while sleep-talking. No one neither had said nor had shown the blond outcast any form of close affection, and now here he was…hearing an innocent girl's uninhibited confession in her sleep. Naruto, with tears threatening to fall, did not feel that it was right to wake her and ask her about it (knowing that she might faint soon after), so he decided to stash away that thought as he began to commune with his tenant.

'_Oi, Kyuubi-sama,' _Naruto called out to his subconscious. Sure enough, the lord of bijuu was awake. _'You don't think that she likes me in that way…Does she?'_

Naruto could have sworn that a sigh escaped the hefty beast's lips. **'Boy, the shy Hyuuga girl admires you. In a way, she has always looked up to you. I could also tell that, while you were training in the Academy, and even when she followed you around, she was always watching you…' **The beast paused to gauge the shocked expression on his host's face before continuing. **'You exude everything that she does not have…the strong will…the drive to succeed…the passion for achievement…and most of all…like you, Naruto, she strives for recognition as well. At least, that's what **_**I**_** surmise.**

'**I think that you may start to realize it as well; however, you're too young for the moment. It'll be up to you to decide in the future. Should you reciprocate those feelings to the one that loves you, even though it's a possibility that you may not be allowed to be together? The Hyuuga are strange like that, what with their odd by-laws and political marriages…that sort of thing…**

'**Anyway, you can't leave her out here like this, so carry her back to the compound and take some time to think about this. There's no need to be hasty,'** Kyuubi pointed out. With a complying nod, the jinchuuriki softly woke up his little cloudburst and carried the Hyuuga heiress back to the Hyuuga compound, bridal-style.

'**How ironic, kit,'** the youkai kitsune chortled.

'_Can it, kitsune!'_ Naruto snapped back.

XXXXXXXXXX

With the lingering thought in the recesses of his mind, Naruto decided to not mention to Hinata about her sleep-talking several days ago. He would wait until he had heard it from a _conscious_ Hinata if it were indeed fact. Instead, he decided to focus more so on training with her and develop her skills in the art of Suiton ninjutsu, alongside the ice-princess and taijutsu practice with the "splendid ninja." For jobs well done, he decided to take her to a few restaurants and an ice-cream parlor as positive incentives to keep up the good work. He thought to himself that they were not dates, but his conscience had been telling him otherwise…along with his ethereal occupant.

Hinata had become more accustomed to her crush's presence in the past several days, so she hardly stammered, unless she received an embarrassing compliment from the blond enigma. However, old habits die hard, for she could neither stop blushing around him nor poke together her forefingers. Her backup ninjutsu were ready by the blond wonder's standards, and he was positive that she could give some confident fighters a run for their money.

"Naruto-kun," Hinata spoke softly while she was walking with Dosha-chan and him to meet up with his squad, "how has your Hyouton training been?"

Breaking from his conflicting thoughts, he answered, "They've been going. I mastered some low-level techniques that could potentially bail out my team in a time of need. I had taken the time to brush up on reading more theory of Fuuton and Doton ninjutsu when I had time at home.

"Then, Haku-chan wanted to berate me for working too hard. I swear that she's like the older sister I never had…" He displayed one of his sad smiles and his true façade exposed. He quickly rebounded as they arrived at a fork in the path to the different training areas. "Well, it looks like that we'll be going off on our separate ways, then, huh?"

The Hyuuga heiress nodded and boldly gave Naruto a hug. "I don't know what to say but…thank you, Naruto-kun…for everything."

The elf-eared genin was surprised by his friend's bravado, but gladly returned the friendly embrace. "You're welcome, Hinata-chan. And good luck on the exams in three days." The hug slacked a bit, but they still had their arms around one another.

Looking up at his cerulean orbs, she said, "I will, and promise me that you will do your best."

Staring down at her opalescent eyes, he smiled and replied, "You know that I'll do that and then some, Hinata-chan."

She smiled and retorted a variation of his catch-phrase. "I'll believe it."

"N-Naruto," Doshaburi spoke up, feeling a bit remorseful of 'ruining the moment,' "we need to get going. We're already late."

The blue-eyed enigma glanced at the sky to evaluate the time. The grimace on his face was evident. "Right…All right, Hinata-chan, I'll see ya when I see ya, and take care." Without thinking, he planted a small kiss on her forehead and ran off with his dusty-hued companion to Training Area Seven.

Hinata was speechless; all she could do was touch the point of contact and blush a profuse fuchsia. _'D-did Naruto-kun just…k-kiss me…?'_ She felt lightheaded as she walked off to meet with her teammates.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Training Ground 7)

"Naruto, we've been waiting for you!" yelled a frantic Sakura who had small bandages wrapped around her wrists. One of the biggest pet peeves for the green-eyed bookworm, aside from perversion, was tardiness.

"Relax, Sakura," Naruto said, trying to calm down his flustered teammate. "It's not like he's going to show up on time…" He dusted off a dried noodle from his new black jumpsuit.

"Don't you even think about adopting his habits, or else," growled the pink-haired kunoichi.

It was strange for Sasuke to not say anything insulting for the moment. "Hey, Sasuke, what's up? You don't seem like yourself today," Naruto commented.

"I'm fine," the raven-haired prodigy said. _'How could I lose to that bushy-browed weirdo?'_ He was mentally irate on the inside that his ego was dropped a peg or two when Lee easily slid through his guard and soundly pummeled him. "I'm just thinking."

Surprisingly, ten minutes later, Kakashi appeared from out of nowhere. "Good morning, everyone…"

"YOU'RE LATE!" shouted the pink-haired bookworm while pointing at him.

"Sorry…I guess I got lost on the path of life…"

"He was probably looking over at the memorial, down the way from here," Naruto surmised. "Your scent is strong over in that area. I take it that you visit that place often, Sensei? Is that the reason why you're always late?"

Even more taken aback by his charge's nose and analytical skills, he nodded. "Now that you know (and we'll be keeping it between the five of us), let's get started with this test, shall we?" He pulled out two bells and clipped them onto his pants.

"Begin!" At that signal, four blurs disappeared into the forest and convened at a predetermined meeting spot. It did not take long to figure out their course of action. Sakura ran support, Sasuke was the lead striker, and the wild cards of the pack were Naruto and his now muscular kit. Luckily, with little bickering, they came up with a solid strategy.

"I think that this is going to be interesting," the raven-haired genius said, smirking a bit. "I didn't know that you already made a shadow clone that's with Kakashi now."

"You know, Sasuke, that's the most I've heard you speak all day." Naruto's offhanded comment earned him a slightly annoyed glare from the quiet Uchiha.

"Let's just get to work," Sakura stated with a heavy sigh. "We don't have all day."

XXXXXXXXXX

Kakashi decided to read up on what was to come in _Make-Out Tactics_ when a pair of hands burst forth from the earth and latched onto his ankles.

"**Doton: Shinjuu Zanshu no Jutsu**!" Kakashi was dragged underneath, replacing the blond in the ground.

"Sorry, Naruto, but I've already pulled that trick on Sasuke the first time," Kakashi languidly said when he disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaving a small head-sized hole.

'_Damn it…' _the Naruto clone mentally cursed when the Kakashi clone dispersed.

XXXXXXXXXX

"He's on the move. Phase One complete," Naruto said to his companions. "Let's move out." Giving a consenting nod, the four figures dashed off to find their perverted sensei.

XXXXXXXXXX

After giving the Naruto clone the slip, he pulled out his reading material once again. After reading a few pages, his chakra felt…disturbed in a way. He was starting to smell flowers of some kind while a chilling mist encompassed him.

'_So…Sakura's casting a genjutsu underneath Naruto's Hyouton, huh? It seems a bit weak and easy to disperse…'_ Kakashi tried to disperse it, but found it somewhat odd that it still remained. _'What the…?'_

His thoughts were cut short when an ivy vine crept up and held him in place. He struggled to reverse the low-level genjutsu, but it was to no avail.

"**Magen: Tsuta Wana no Jutsu**…It's a very tricky genjutsu that's difficult to dispel unless you were a genjutsu specialist or an advanced doujutsu wielder," Sakura spoke up while walking out behind a tree and into the icy miasma. "The Haruno-clan genjutsu are pesky and rather annoying, just like a weed that won't go away, Kakashi-sensei." She gave a rather evil grin. "Phase Two…complete…"

Kakashi was about to speak up but then he smelled something that was rapidly burning…

"**Fuuton: Daitoppa**!"

"**Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu**!"

"**Gousei Hijutsu: Shounetsujigoku**!!" A raging wildfire rushed through part of the forest, incinerating anything in its wake….and it was heading for the wide-eyed jounin in incredible haste.

With ingenuity and a good bit of luck, the Cyclopean jounin managed to replace a log in his stead, using the Academy-level **Kawarimi no Jutsu**, before the raging inferno burned him to a crisp. The intense heat evaporated the chilling mist as he was evaluating their attack patterns.

'_Whew…that was too close, and I can feel the heat from this far away…'_ He smiled under his mask. _'It looks like they're finally working together…as a team. Sakura is running support with her genjutsu, which leaves Naruto and Sasuke to alternate attack patterns…very clever…' _

Something felt very off at the moment, and then Sharingan Kakashi realized it. _'Wait a minute…where's Dosha-chan…?'_

A voice rang out behind him…

"**Tama Tosshin**!" Sure enough, it was the unofficial forth member of Squad Seven.

A crimson flash bore through the Copy-Ninja's back as he was forced back into the slightly glassed-over terrain. Peering over his shoulder, he saw the dust-colored kit, perched on the branch, with a crimson aura surrounding him…and blood-red irises instead of the curious-gray kind. What had been the shocker was the somewhat hardened look etched onto his muzzle.

'_So, I take it that the Kyuubi decided to give the kit of bit more youki…'_ He lazily thought. _'This ought to be interesting…'_ Kakashi got up and put away his book. He had then pulled up his hitai-ate to reveal his Sharingan eye. "Since you four aren't joking around this time around, I won't pull any punches, and while I'm at it…" He whipped out his dog-summoning scroll and summoned a few nin-ken to hold off the ocher-hued cloudburst. "Take care of Doshaburi…I'll take on my charges." The elite jounin and his hounds pounced to strike.

XXXXXXXXXX

The bell-test-turned-brawl lasted for about two hours. Sasuke sparred with Kakashi in taijutsu while holding off Naruto's Fuuton ninjutsu with his own Katon ninjutsu. However, with his attention diverted, Sakura focused onto Kakashi's chakra signature and snared him a couple of times with her Ivy Snare Illusion. Although she was a one-trick pony, Kakashi knew for a fact that she was holding back a bit. He could probably assume that her clan genjutsu were just as dangerous as Yuuhi Kurenai's brand.

'_The girl is smart, but she needs to not hold back when it comes to eliminating an enemy.'_ Kakashi thought as he back-flipped away from his charges, exhausted. He would have to admit that they could give the elite jounin a nice spar when grouped together. When he landed on the ground, he heard no jingle. His eyes widened and felt where the bells had been tied…and they were gone.

"Looking for these, Kakashi?" asked the raven-haired genius who held out one bell for Naruto to hold along with him. Sakura was kneeling down, holding the other bell. From the forest, Doshaburi, who returned to normal, emerged from some shrubbery with a few scratches but was relatively unharmed as he touched the bell that Sakura was holding with his tail. "I grabbed them while you were preoccupied with Sakura's genjutsu. You should've looked underneath the underneath." He smirked.

With a sigh, Kakashi pulled down his forehead protector and said, "Well, I'll admit that you've earned it, and I must say that, compared to the first time, your skills were synchronous and on-point, with little to no error. Hell, I would say that I _really_ like you guys now, and you all have some skill if you apply it properly.

"Sakura, I'm impressed by your illusionary techniques. However, you mustn't hold back in the field of combat, because I know for a fact that your chakra potential is higher now than what it had been normally. It's obvious that you learned more than just that one genjutsu in the past two months."

"I understand, Sensei," said the pink-haired flower mistress. _'Sorry, Sensei, but I don't want any of these two to see what I can_ really _do now…'_

'**Hey, if they have secrets, then why can't we? **_**Shannaro!**_**' **retorted her inner-self.

"Sasuke, Naruto, you were the ones to improve most of all. You moved aside your friendly rivalry (for now) for the greater good of the team. That's why I'm proud of the two of you as well." They grinned at the compliment as he turned to the ocher-colored fox cub.

"Dosha-kun, you surprised me back there. I didn't see you coming at all…no chakra signature, no scent, nothing. Being a bit young for a nin-ken, you actually managed to be on-par with a few of my hounds. Has Naruto been giving you steroids?" He joked and grinned behind his mask.

"N-No, Kakashi-sensei," replied the little hound as he pawed at the dirt in embarrassment. "It was all natural ability, sir."

He leaned down and patted the kit on his head, while displaying his eye-smile. "Well, good job, and tell Naruto to not slack off, will ya?"

The elf-eared genin mumbled with arms crossed, "I'm right here, you know…"

"Okay, guys, you can have the rest of the day off." Kakashi looked around and saw that the training field could use some repairs. The earth was pockmarked with smoldering craters, some trees experienced a bit of frostbite while others were subjected to fiery destruction, and there were layers of glass around the field from the intense flames. "…I'll ask Hokage-sama if he could send a repair team out here to fix up the training field. If we torched the Hero Monument, he would probably have all of our heads…" He chuckled to himself as his charges bolted from the destruction zone. After his squad fled, he looked to see a fully intact stone obelisk and grinned under his deep-blue mask. _'Well, they're safe for now…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

"I'll see you guys later. I have to train," Sasuke stated as he walked away.

"Hey, I'll do you a favor and give you a few clones spar with you," Naruto spoke up before he walked off.

"No thanks," retorted the raven-haired prodigy. "Besides, your Kage Bunshin wouldn't even last one minute with me."

The red color on Naruto's face rose up like a thermometer before he fumed at the ears. "Oi, bastard, I'm trying to be a good teammate here! We're supposed to help one another!" Taking the reins of his temper, the blond cooled down. "I know that my taijutsu sucks, but I'm at least trying to understand our teamwork better. Plus, I'll admit that I…need-your-help-in-that-realm." It was a bitter taste in his mouth for asking the number-one rookie for aid, but he needed to at least be well-rounded in ninjutsu and taijutsu. Lee was excellent, but the wanted to garner another opinion on the matter.

Sasuke was somewhat puzzled as to why the prideful 'dead-last' wanted _his_ help. Normally, he would want to outdo him in every possible aspect. To the raven-haired Uchiha, he would never live down this very moment of superiority. "I'm sorry, but I didn't quite catch that. I couldn't hear you…" He held a hand to an ear and leaned toward the dobe. He would milk it for all its worth.

"I said," growled the fox-boy, "that I'll admit…that I…need your help in taijutsu…" Naruto would not usually feed the Uchiha's ego, but he had to bite the bullet for his sake to get stronger. He turned to his pink-haired teammate. "And I could use some pointers on how to break a genjutsu, if that's fine with you."

"Why would I help you, knowing good and well that you can use Fuuton, Suiton, Doton, Hyouton…" she paused and whispered. "…and Mokuton ninjutsu?"

"Okay, so I'm a potential ninjutsu powerhouse, you're a developing genjutsu specialist, and Sasuke can…probably wipe the floor with me in taijutsu. I only need pointers on _how_ to identify and break an illusion, not to _learn_ one. I want to work with the bastard here ("I knew who my parents were, dumbass," Sasuke grumbled) to improve on physical combat." Before the even more prideful Uchiha spoke up, Naruto turned in his direction to cut him off. "And no, Sasuke, when you spar with my clones using ninjutsu, do _not_ use the Sharingan, because I'll know if you did or didn't when it dispels.

"Copying a technique is one thing, but using it at your disposal with a lack of regard to those who worked hard to use it is an entirely different story." His gaze hardened in likeness of glaciers, just to reinforce his position on the subject. "If you want to learn a technique, learn it in the traditional way…train your ass off until you can't stand. You should take what Lee-san said when he soundly beat your ass."

Sakura gasped that Sasuke-kun, who had supposedly awakened his Sharingan, was easily trounced by her spandex-wearing tutor. As for Sasuke, he could not help but take in the words of wisdom from his pointy-eared teammate.

"Hn, fine," snorted the raven-haired prodigy. "If I teach you some taijutsu, then teach me some of your ninjutsu."

"Eh, I guess so," Naruto said. "But, you're only going to be learning more ninjutsu _theory_ first because you're fire-natured and you can't effectively use any of _my_ jutsu. Add that to the fact that naturally recomposing your chakra into fire can add more might to your already powerful fire-based attacks."

Sasuke reluctantly nodded after mulling over the benefits. It was either that or nothing at all, seeing that if he had copied any of the dobe's ninjutsu, then all hell would break loose and he would feel the full wrath of the elements upon him.

Naruto summoned his bunch of shadow clones for Sasuke to use at whim while summoning a few more to head off with Sakura to learn how to get out of the illusions. And as for Naruto…

He decided to go to his one-stop eatery for binge eating…the Ichiraku Ramen Shop.

'_Jeez…I haven't seen Teuchi-oyaji and Ayame-neechan in a_ long _time…'_ he thought as he ran to the quaint little joint.

XXXXXXXXXX

It was the peak of the lunch hour and the ramen parlor was filled to capacity, save for two seats. A seasoned chef with gray hair in white chef's attire was sweating rivers as he was fulfilling the orders of many. His brunette-haired daughter/assistant was quickly jotting down the meal orders.

Eventually, the rush started to lose its momentum when a pointy-eared blond boy appeared on the scene with an adorable fox cub.

"Oi, Oyaji," Naruto cried out. "I want five bowls of miso, a couple of shrimp and prawn and one barbecue ramen for me and my Dosha-chan, please."

Teuchi gave the blond wonder a scrutinizing look before his eyes widened considerably. "Naruto…!? Is that really you? You've…changed."

"Yeah, it's me, old man. I decided to drop by to see how business has been going. I would've been here more, but Haku-chan keeps me away from this place. She said something about watching what I eat or something like that…"

"Hmm…" Teuchi thought with contemplative eyes. He lowered his tone of voice so only Naruto could hear. "So, I take it that _he_ was responsible for your changes, huh?" The elf-eared genin gave a slight nod.

The beautiful brunette appeared from the storage area and glanced at the familiar newcomer. "Father, who is he? And you _do_ know that we don't allow pets here…"

"Ayame-neechan, it's been a while," Naruto spoke with his somewhat deeper voice and a Cheshire grin. "And this _pet_ is my _friend_, Doshaburi, a stray that I had picked up while on my mission in Wave Country…"

Ayame's eyes widened just like her father's. "Naruto-kun, is that you?" she asked in amazement.

"Yeah, it's me, Oneechan," he answered while chuckling. "How've you been? How has this place been while I was away?"

'_Those ears and whiskers make him look so cute like that…wait, what am I saying…?'_ she thought before she answered the blond's question. "Business has been going smoothly. So what have you been up to?" She moved from around the counter to sit by Naruto and his foxy comrade.

Naruto displayed a fang-toothed foxy grin. "I've been training practically non-stop after I came back. I have a good bit of jutsu under my belt, so now I'm more capable of holding my own…and Dosha-chan here knows a good bit of moves as well."

"That's great to hear, Naruto-kun," Ayame said with a warm smile to her 'little brother.' She picked up the cute, muscular fuzz-ball and began to stroke its pelt. "Dosha-chan is so adorable." She decided to rub behind his ears…a grave mistake…

"Ah…that f-feels lovely…"

"WAH!" Ayame wailed as she dropped the cub back onto the stool. "That fox just spoke to me!" She pointed in disbelief at the cute kit.

Naruto cheekily grinned. "Yeah, I forgot to mention that little tidbit. He's a special kind of fox that can speak in human tongue."

"So he can speak human like that one-eared wolf that's owned by Tsume-san, eh?" Teuchi asked while rubbing his chin. "Anyway, Ayame, we need to get back to work for our number-one customer."

She slightly rolled her eyes. "Fine, Tousan…" _'I wanted to talk with him a bit more…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(The next afternoon…)

After another D-rank mission the raven-haired recluse traveled back to the Uchiha complex to throw himself into training once more, leaving the pink-haired bookworm, the pointy-eared wonder and his vulpine comrade.

They were walking a bit until Naruto and Doshaburi smelled three distinct odors from behind them. They turned around and noticed…a rectangular rock disguise. Naruto scratched his head and wondered who would be dumb enough to be persuaded by that phony camouflage.

"All right, the jig is up…Konohamaru-otouto," Naruto flatly stated.

"Shoot! You saw through my disguise. That's why you're my rival, Oyabun…" The square aggregate burst in a flash of light and exploded, leaving three coughing children: one with dark, spiky hair and a long, blue scarf around his neck; one with dark, mushroom-like hair, glasses and a running nose; and a kunoichi with upturned red-haired braids. "Udon, I think that you used too much gunpowder."

"What do you guys want this time?" Naruto asked. It was a welcomed relief to be away from the Konohamaru Corps for quite some time. However, all good things must come to an end.

"Do you want to play Ninja with us, Oyabun?" asked the leader of the squad, the Honorable Grandson.

"How about I one-up your offer, Otouto? I'll give you one of my scrolls on chakra control exercises. Even though you won't learn that until much later on, I suggest that you three get started on it now. Trust me; it'll pay off in the long run."

Konohamaru looked at the scroll and held it like it was the Holy Grail. "Wow, boss, thank you so much. Now I won't lose to you now…" He turned to the odd-looking girl with pink locks and pointed. "Who is she, boss? And why is her hair freakishly pink? And the size of her forehead…Is that…_natural_?"

Sakura looked at the little shrimp with a glint of anger in her eyes. The glare that Konohamaru received made him slightly walk back. "For your information," growled the pink-haired kunoichi as she approached the little runt, "I'm Sakura…MY HAIR IS REAL! AND MY FOREHEAD IS NOT HUGE!!!"

Naruto sighed at what was about to develop. "Sakura, please relax. You'll make that kid wet his pants." He took a second glance at her and noticed a dark, wavy distortion superimposing around her. His eyes grew in shock. _'Oh shit, that might be the Inner Persona switching places with her…This could get ugly…'_

Konohamaru was on the receiving end of a ki-filled glare and decided to make a run for it…only to bump into two foreign shinobi.

One was garbed in all black, with a matching black hood with two points on top of them. The shinobi carried an odd bundle on his back that was wrapped in bandages. He had a circular pattern on his chest that was half-yellow and half-red. Purple face-paint lined around the edges of his eyes and cheek region like a kabuki stage performer. His hitai-ate displayed an "I"-like hourglass engraved in the middle.

The second outsider was a dirty-blonde kunoichi a couple of years their senior, garbed in a pale-purple battle kimono with a red obi. The back of her hair was divided into four messy ponytails, and she carried a foldable battle-fan strapped onto her back. Her hitai-ate with the same hourglass carving was loosely tied around her neck.

The foreign ninja with the face paint picked up the frightened Konohamaru by the scarf and neck collar of his shirt, making him gag for air.

"That hurt, brat," the estranged shinobi said with partial disgust in his voice.

"Knock it off, Kankurou. You're going to be in trouble for this later," said the exotic kunoichi.

'_Just who are those people, anyway?'_ Sakura mused, looking at their forehead protectors. Since she started the situation, she decided to diffuse it as quickly as possible. "I'm sorry about what happened just a minute ago. I was just joking around…"

"Hey, let go of him right now, you fake-ass bully!" yelled the pointy-eared genin who had just started to crack his knuckles.

The one known as 'Kankurou' looked at the blond whelp's hitai-ate. _'So these guys are Konoha genin, eh…?'_ He said with an eerie smile and fake whine, "Aw…but I want to play a bit before some annoying little gnats come…"

Naruto whiffed the air and caught the scent of his dark-haired teammate. _'He's here…'_ He peered over at the trees and noticed that he had a rock in his hand, ready to strike. He turned to the foreign shinobi with a frozen death-glare. "You're going to be sorry for laying your hand on him. Put him down, or face the consequences!"

Kankurou turned to the elf-eared runt and looked upon him in a condescending manner. "You Konoha genin are pathetic, and you're starting to piss me off."

He pulled up Konohamaru a bit further off the ground before he continued. "I always hated short people, and you're so disrespectful for someone younger than me…It makes me want to enjoy breaking you…"

Naruto and Sakura's eyes narrowed at the make-up-wearing bastard while Moegi and Udon stayed behind them, cowering in fear. _'Just who the hell are these guys…?'_ they both thought while coming up with a quick solution.

With a defeated sigh, the Suna kunoichi remarked, "Well, I'm not going to be responsible for your actions, Kankurou."

"Don't worry, Temari," Kankuro smoothly retorted. "After I'm done with this little gaki, I'll take care of the blond leprechaun…"

He reared back his left hand only to be stopped by two things…a flying rock into his right hand, which dropped the Honorable Grandson, and a stone obstruction into his face, which made him fly back a few feet. Shakily standing on his own two feet, he saw the dark-haired avenger in the tree, holding another rock and the blue-eyed loudmouth in front of the pink-haired girl in a defensive stance, with his cold, unnerving gaze affixed onto him.

"You're a long way from home, and you're _way_ out of your league," Sasuke coolly remarked.

"And _never_ underestimate us, you mascara-wearing freak…" For a fraction of a second, Kankurou could have sworn that the blond's eyes flashed blood-red before they changed back, but he passed it off as some genjutsu.

"Now you've pissed me off greatly, you little brats…" The puppet-master was about to pull off his back-bundle when a creepy, monotonous voice foiled his 'fun.'

"Kankuro, back off."

The voice shocked everyone who was in attendance. Hanging upside-down from a tree was a boy with blood-red hair, cold teal eyes with dark rings surrounding them. On the left side of his forehead was the kanji for the word 'love' branded on his face. The biggest surprise had been the large, peanut-like gourd on his back.

"You're an embarrassment to our village. Have you forgotten the reason why we came all the way here?" asked the unidentified enigma.

'_How did he appear without making a sound?'_ thought the raven-haired genius. _'Only shinobi on Kakashi's level could do that…'_

The elder boy tried to laugh off the situation. "I-I know…I-I mean, they challenged us…They started the whole thing really…See, here's what happened—"

"Shut up…" His cold gaze shocked Kankurou to no end, and the next words that were felt by the surrounding ninja were cold to the marrow. "…or I'll kill you…"

After stammering briefly, the puppet-master caved in to his crazed little brother and put up his hands in defense. "Uh, right…I was…totally out of line, Gaara…"

The one identified as Gaara looked over to the branch where Sasuke was standing. "I'm sorry…for any trouble he's caused."

Before he disappeared in a flurry of sand and reappeared in front of his team, Sasuke made a note of that crazed look in his eye.

Naruto picked up on the vibe as well. _'Man, I got a bad feeling about this guy…'_

'**I would suggest that you stay on your toes with that one, Naruto,'** noted his tenant. **'Something about that aura seems…oddly familiar…'**

'_He r-reeks of chakra…and I can smell b-blood in that gourd, Naruto,'_ the little cloudburst intoned via mental link.

"Let's go. We didn't come here to play games," Gaara stated unemotionally. He turned around and gazed at the raven-haired kid and the blond with the pointy ears. _'I ought to keep my eye on the both of them…'_ he thought as his team walked away, only to be stopped by the dark-haired tough-guy.

"Wait," called out Sasuke. "You, with the gourd on his back…Identify yourself."

Gaara fully turned around. "My name is Sabaku no Gaara…I'm curious to know about you as well. Who are you?"

'_I get it now,'_ the pink-haired wiz-kid thought. _'They must be from Sunagakure, from the Land of Wind, and they're here to compete in the Chuunin exams as well. They sure are a tough bunch…'_

"I'm Uchiha Sasuke," retorted the lone Sharingan-wielder, with a small grin on his face. _'It looks like the Chuunin exams are going to be quite interesting…'_

"And you," Gaara spoke up, turning to Naruto. "The pointy-eared kid with the little fox cub by your side…Who are you?" _'This guy oozes power…Mother will be pleased when I feed her his blood…'_

Although he was a bit unnerved by the stare-down, the fox-boy spoke up. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto." _'And those eyes look reminiscent for some reason…but I can't put my finger on it.'_

"Now that introductions are out of the way, we leave," Gaara said as he and his siblings took off in a triplet of blurs.

All was quiet for a while, until Naruto spoke up. "It looks like that we may have our work cut out for us, after all…" His teammates silently nodded.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Ninja Academy, two days later, 3 pm)

"Hmm…I wonder what's with all the ruckus…" Naruto mumbled as they walked into the crowd with Doshaburi atop his forehead. He paused for a moment to see a young lady in a Chinese pink shirt and green pants get knocked down by two little 'kids' blocking the doorway to 'Room 301.'

As Squad Seven approached the door, Sakura and Naruto recognized a familiar face. "Lee-san?" both had asked.

The Second Green Beast turned in their direction. "Oh, good day to you Sakura-san, Naruto-kun." He politely bowed as they bowed back.

"So, what's the deal here?" Naruto asked. "Why are we waiting around here knowing that this isn't the right floor? And how come you didn't take out those guys in front of the door with your blinding speed?"

"Yeah, Lee-san, this hall oozes of illusion," Sakura stated, on account that illusions were her specialty, "so why dilly-dally around here anyway?"

"We did not want the other competitors to know how strong we truly are," Lee answered. "That and we were trying to scope out the competition."

While Sakura and Naruto were chatting away with their former tutor, Sasuke demanded that the disguised _jounin_ remove the genjutsu, which they did. So much for the intended plan of weeding out those who did not belong here…

"All right, guys, let's go," said the raven-haired genius. Before Squad Seven left, a white-eyed boy with long, flowing locks halted them.

"Hey, you there," said the equally stoic lad. "Identify yourself."

"It is common courtesy to state your name first, before you ask someone else of his own name," retorted the dark-haired avenger.

"You're a rookie, aren't you?" asked the white-eyed shinobi, totally dodging the question. "How old are you?"

"Since you won't give me your name," Sasuke started, maintaining his cool composure, "I'm not obliged to answer that." The white-eyed ninja narrowed his eyes, while the girl with the chocolate-colored buns thought that he was kind of cute.

"Well, well, well…" Naruto spoke up while narrowing his eyes slightly to analyze the pale-skinned boy. "You're one of those pompous, self-righteous assholes. I can tell by those freaky eyes of yours that you're definitely a Hyuuga."

"And what of it?" the Hyuuga prodigy asked with subtle ire. He was somewhat irked by the blond dropout's nonchalant comment. "This does not concern you, scum."

The elf-eared genin blearily gazed at the more prideful kid. Seriously, what was up with all the conceited pricks that hailed from Konoha? Dealing with one was trouble enough. "It does when it comes to my teammate, Hyuuga-_yarou_. C'mon, guys. We were just taking our leave to the real Exam Room."

The team brushed off the now-fuming Hyuuga prodigy as they headed upstairs to meet up with their sensei.

"Hey, guys. Glad that you could make it," said the joyous jounin, displaying his patented eye-smile. "Since you three have shown up, you all can take the Chuunin exams. If even one of you were to not show up, then the team wouldn't be able to compete." Seeing the slightly skeptical looks on their faces, he continued. "I knew that if I were to phrase it that way, then one of you probably wouldn't have gone through with the selection examinations.

"Well, anyway, step into those doors and good luck. I have my complete faith in all four of you." The Copy-Ninja disappeared in a poof of smoke as the squad pushed through the double-doors.

'_This is all or nothing…'_ the raven-haired Uchiha thought.

'_Let's give it our best shot…'_ thought the pink-haired bookworm. _**'Let's kick some major ass…Shannaro!'**_ her Inner Persona clenched her fists and did a barrage of punches and kicks.

'_I think that I'll be as ready as I'll ever be…'_ thought the elf-eared fox boy as they were encased by light and faded into the room…

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N**: I hope that you have enjoyed this chapter. I know that some things are out of place as compared to the canon, such as the true introduction of Rock Lee before the Sand Siblings. I let it be that way for a reason.

I decided to add in the little tidbit with Hinata and Naruto as a bonus within the chapter to see how well they have progressed.

As for the preliminary exam prior to the Chuunin exams in canon…I decided to opt out that part. The second bell test, in my opinion, sufficed for Squad Seven.

_The start of the exam is about to commence. What lies in store for our newly-developed Squad Seven? Will they be ready for what will be thrown at them?_

_Jikai… (Next time…) on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Impending Danger: A Snake in the Grass_

_Sakura: This test is ridiculously…hard…_

_DHO: Remember what your sensei told you, Sakura…Look underneath the underneath…_

_Sakura: Yeah, yeah, I know…Now, if I could figure out this solution…_

_DHO: Sigh…I guess you're a bit too focused on that test, huh?_

Romaji Guide:

**Mi**: snake; serpent

**Senpai**: superior (yes, Inner Sakura holds Naruto in very high regard now)

**Tenketsu**: pressure points; in this case, pressure points along the chakra network

**Kinjutsu**: forbidden technique

**Inu**: dog

**Suiton: Kyuusui no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Absorption Technique)**: C-rank supplementary ninjutsu; user drains fresh groundwater from the earth or water vapor in the atmosphere for other water-based techniques; useful for finding water sources when on prolonged trips (created)

**Ossan**: slang term for "old-man"

**Doton: Shinjuu Zanshu no Jutsu (Earth Release: Inner Decapitation Technique)**: D-rank supplementary short-range ninjutsu; the user, emerging from the ground below the target area, pulls down (or possibly swaps places with) the opponent so that only their head is above ground (Narutopedia)

**Magen: Tsuta Wana no Jutsu (Demonic Illusion: Ivy Snare Technique)**: D-rank offensive/supplementary Haruno-clan genjutsu; allows user to "ensnare" the target with an illusionary ivy plant (created)

**Fuuton: Daitoppa (Wind Release: Great Breakthrough)**: C-rank offensive short- to mid-range ninjutsu; user blows out a powerful blast of wind, which can easily level a large area (Naruto )

**Gousei Hijutsu: Shounetsujigoku (Combined Secret Art: Burning Hell)**: B-rank offensive all-range ninjutsu; users combine fire and wind-chakra create a scorching wildfire that destroys anything in its unaltered path (created)

**Kawarimi no Jutsu (Substitution Technique **or** Body Replacement Technique)**: E-rank ninjutsu; switches body with another nearby object; the mechanics of this technique have been contested and has not been concluded with a sufficient physics engine on how it properly functions (Narutopedia)

**Kitsune no Hijutsu: Tama Tosshin (Secret Art of the Foxes: Spirit Rush**, aka **Bullet Charge)**: D-rank close-range hijutsu for vulpine-class animals; user charges dead-ahead at high speeds, encased in bright, crimson light; hits target about 85 percent of the time, due to its tunnel vision effect (created)

**Oyaji**: old man

**Otouto**: little brother

**Oyabun**: boss; chief

**Obi**: kimono sash

**Yarou**: literally, 'rascal,' but in other cases, it can also mean 'bastard,' too


	10. Impending Danger: A Snake in the Grass

**A/N**: Greetings to you all and I hope that you have all been well…

**THIS IS HIGHLY IMPORTANT AND I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW…**

(In other words, old business…)

Reviews: passed the 200 mark…I can't complain…

Beforehand, I received a review from someone (who shall remain anonymous) that Naruto has gotten unbelievably powerful in a short period of time. Point of clarification: I should have mentioned that Naruto learned how to master the _principles_ of the various elemental-based ninjutsu. You have to learn how to crawl before you learn how to walk, in my opinion. Anyway, I would like to get your opinion regarding the matter via PM.

Here's the basic rundown of his acquired abilities, and tell me what you think if his elemental repertoire is a bit too much, or if you think that, with the shadow clone trick, this is doable during the two-month time period:

Suiton: 3 (one supplementary, one defensive, one offensive)

Fuuton: 3 (one defensive, two offensive)

Doton: 3 (one supplementary and two weak offensive)

Hyouton: 4 (three supplementary; one impromptu offensive)

Mokuton: none (off-limits)

This includes the ones that you've seen last chapter (Great Breakthrough, Inner Decapitation, Water Absorption, and two unnamed Hyouton and Doton ninjutsu that will be named later on).

Phantom Flame stands in an unknown class of its own; he can only form it to the size of a small grapefruit for the time being before he can fire it around at will. **For the record, none of these are above C-class (Chuunin status) ninjutsu**.

So, all in all, he only knows thirteen elemental-based attacks in his arsenal (fourteen with Phantom Flame), his genjutsu is a bit below average and his taijutsu is mediocre. I know that it would be ridiculous that Naruto knew more than four in each category by this time.

ITEMS OF NEW BUSINESS…TWO

**Number One**: I would like to say this again: **WolfLord04** has given me the _biggest_, most beneficial suggestion when it comes to this story (or any other story that I may write in the future) from here on out. If you have any suggestions, then please send them by a private message or e-mail on account of two things: 1) your suggestions will remain hidden in my Suggestions Box in my Yahoo e-mail account; and 2) it will add to the mystery to see what I will gladly take into consideration and which others that I will reject. I know that some of you would like to get it all out in one flare in the review space, but this will be for the better.

On that note, what that boils down to is to leave **reviews****, ****comments****, **and/or**concerns** where they should be addressed and send _ALL_ **suggestions** or **debates**to me by PM.

That is all for the main announcement but keep in mind of the new business, for that creed remains in effect from hereafter.

**Number Two**:For my next item of business, someone had asked me if any of the jinchuuriki might obtain a pet-companion/animal familiar of their own (even though the question was asked about having _nin-ken_, but I decided to phrase it in this way) just like Naruto. I would like to get your thoughts on this as well (once again, via PM). Should any of the demon containers in this story have their own personal pet-companion that reflects their species of tenant? I'm not sure about that, but I'll let it simmer on the backburner for the moment (frankly because it would clog the scene with so many animals for starters, and I would have to give them a personality to boot).

Let's go ahead and get to it, shall we?

_**Chapter Ten**__: Impending Danger: A Snake in the Grass_

"Whoa…" _'…I didn't know that_ this _many people could fit in here…'_ Naruto thought as he looked at all of the assembled teams. While he was scanning to the left, his dusty-hued companion scanned in the opposite direction while atop his head.

"Wow…" Sakura muttered with her widened green eyes. She too was astounded by the amount of squads that were giving them the "evil eye" glare. _'I've never felt such high chakra potential before…'_

'_**Get a grip, pinky. Focus on the exam…Shannaro!'**_ roared her inner-self.

'_This…is going to be interesting…'_ Sasuke thought with his small grin on his face. _'I want to test my limits with these people.'_

Transfixed within their thoughts, they missed a fangirl-ish cry…

"_Sasuke-kun…!_"

From out of nowhere, a platinum-blonde kunoichi in a purple dress and body wrappings attempted to pounce onto the dark-haired avenger. Unfortunately, things did not go as planned…

Sasuke felt that one of his ninja sandals had a stone in it, so he leaned down to find the source of discomfort. As he was leaning down, Yamanaka Ino flew over his crouching body and collided head-first with the dobe, who had been looking around at the competition. Doshaburi was dislodged from his friend's head with a single jump as both blonds landed on the floor, with Ino pinning down Naruto. Doshaburi landed on Ino's back to add to the dog-pile as his team was looking down at the scene. Sakura rubbed the side of her temple while Sasuke just shook his head in wonder.

Naruto groaned. "What the…?" His electric-blue eyes looked into sea-green ones as he gathered his bearings. He gave Ino a fang-toothed grin. "Hey there Ino. Glad that you could drop in…"

It had been a long time since the platinum-blonde kunoichi had seen the fellow blond. She was looking at him with disbelief etched onto her face due to his physical changes…along with a miniature blush. "N-Naruto…? Is that you?" _'My, my, he sure has gotten kind of hunky…Wait…Where did that come from?'_ She was oddly perplexed about the creeping, lustful feelings toward the proclaimed "class clown."

"The one and only," replied Naruto as his elf-like ears twitched. He cleared his throat and gave her a sincere smile. "Now, Ino, would you mind…?"

Ino snapped out of gazing at the boy and replied, "Oh…right. Of course." After the little cloudburst hopped off Ino, she got up and offered a hand to Naruto.

"No thanks, Ino. I got it covered," the elf-eared jinchuuriki said. With a bit of wind chakra from his hands, he had quickly risen to his feet.

'_You don't have to show off, Naruto…'_ Doshaburi reprimanded the blond by cerebral connection while rolling his eyes.

"Jeez, why must you be so troublesome Ino?" Shikamaru asked with a lazy drawl while walking up alongside his somewhat hefty, brunet friend Akimichi Chouji, who was eating a bag of barbecue potato chips.

"Well, I wanted to get to Sasuke-kun, but…"

"Ino-pig, he's with me," Sakura stated calmly. It was then that Ino and Sakura started up a bitter feud with shooting insults back and forth, shouting things like "Billboard-Brow," "Forehead," "Porker," and "Ino-pig."

'_I'm no one's property,'_ Sasuke mentally sighed. He whispered to the dobe, "I'll trade places with you Naruto. So how about it…?"

"No thank you," he said with his toothy smile. "I already have my troubles. Have fun, teme."

"Well, what'd ya know? It looks like all nine rookies made it."

The gathered teams looked in the direction of the gruff, overbearing voice. Coming up to Squads Seven and Ten was a boy with red facial fang-tattoos in a scruffy jacket with a dog on top of his head, a quiet boy with a light, high-collar shirt, afro-like dark hair and sunglasses, and one of Naruto's training partners, Hinata, who had swapped her large coat with a loose-fitting white jacket.

"Oh, great…You guys are here too?" asked Shikamaru. He sighed. "This is going to be such a pain."

"This ought to be fun…At least, only to those that are good enough to make the cut…right Sasuke-kun?" the dog-boy boastfully remarked, while his canine companion, Akamaru, barked in accordance.

"Kiba, you better be careful not to get too overconfident," replied the dark-haired avenger with a smirk on his face.

"Just wait. We're gonna blow you guys away," said Kiba.

"I wouldn't count on it Inu-Ibuki," retorted Naruto with an aloof look. "I'm not sure if you'll last at all."

After a quick realization of who was speaking to him, the dog-user began to retort. "Oh, and this is coming from the 'dead-last,' eh? And even though you may have a new look, you still won't make it…" Kiba looked down at the dusty-hued fox cub by Naruto's feet. "And what's that little pipsqueak doing here, anyway? Are you trying to copy my jutsu or something?"

Naruto gave a fanged smirk. "No, Doshaburi knows his own brand of special nin-ken hijutsu, totally independent of mine." Naruto thought for a brief second. _'Well, not really…thanks to Kyuubi-sama's youki, that is…'_ He continued. "Besides, I wouldn't be caught dead trying to turn my fox kit into a clone of myself anyway. He's cute and cuddly that way, unlike _your_ mutt."

While Kiba and Naruto were hashing out indecent words, Doshaburi and Akamaru decided to sniff out one another and talk in canine tongue. They soon became fast friends, much to the dismay of their prideful owners.

"Kitsune-kun, you're gonna be a disgrace to us canine-users everywhere!" Kiba shot back. "There's no way that your little cub knows something that acts like the effect of a soldier pill! It's just not possible…"

"I've always done the impossible, Inu-Ibuki," Naruto coolly remarked, holding up his claw-like hand. That fit of arrogance earned a bite on the leg from his dirt-hued companion. Naruto winced from Dosha-chan's fangs.

'_It's best to humble yourself. Like Sasuke said, don't get too boastful. You might just get dropped a peg or two,'_ his fox-hound scolded.

'**I agree with the kit on this one, Naruto,'** Kyuubi remarked, even though it was odd for the beast to mention his host by name. **'There are still others out there that can gain the upper hand against you in combat. Remember what your sensei told you…there are 'ninja younger than you that are stronger than him.'"**

Feeling a need to intervene in the soon-to-be fight, Hinata spoke up with a blush on her face. "Uh…Hi, Naruto-kun."

Surprised by the soft, angelic voice, he turned to the indigo-haired clan heiress. "Hey, what's up, Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked with a warm smile on his face…and some wide-eyed expressions from those clumped around. "So how's the training been?"

'_Did he just call her Hinata-chan?'_ was the collective thought of everyone around. Almost everyone had a surprised look etched onto their faces, save for Kiba and Shino. Shino maintained his stoic face with an eyebrow raised over his sunglasses while Kiba was slightly fuming at the ears due to the fact that he got all "chummy" with _his_ Hinata.

Hinata took on a fuchsia hue, embarrassed by being called "Hinata-chan" in public, especially by her crush. "It's been well…" She poked together her fingers and smiled. "I want to…thank you again for helping me."

"Oh, it's not a problem at all. And if you come out on top in the exam, then I'll treat you afterwards and you pick the place. How does that sound?"

Her face started to heat up as she started to feel a bit flushed. "And if I don't…"

'_She really is cute when she gets like that…'_ "Well, I'll take you out anyway for doing your best, Hinata-chan." He gave her a smile, unaware of a highly pissed off Inuzuka Kiba.

"Just who the hell do you think you are anyway!?" Kiba roared.

"Relax, Kiba," Naruto said. "I don't see why you're getting upset. It's just a little invitation, that's all…"

"Hey, you guys. You might want to keep it down a little."

The Rookie Nine turned to see a gray-haired teen roughly six years their senior in deep-purple attire walking toward them. He had a Konoha hitai-ate on his forehead and corrective eyewear.

"I mean, no offense, but you are the nine rookies, right?" the glasses-wearing kid calmly remarked to the greenhorn genin. "Fresh out of the academy? I wouldn't go making a spectacle of yourselves." He adjusted his glassed to the bridge of his nose. "Just cool it. This isn't a class field trip, you know."

The beast within the recesses of his mind growled when the mysterious kid walked up.

'_What is it Kyuubi-sama?'_ The blond jinchuuriki worriedly asked his riled-up tenant.

'**That reptilian stench…'** Kyuubi said to his host. **'I've smelled it before. Stay on your toes with that one, kit. He could be in cahoots with the snake-teme, Orochimaru.'** Naruto scowled slightly from the late-breaking news from his tenant and nodded.

"Well who asked you!? Who are you!?" Ino shot back. She was kind of suspicious with that kind smirk on his face.

"I'm Yakushi Kabuto. But really, you should take a look around you." The Rookie Nine looked around as all of the competitors were glaring in their direction. Some of the looks were creeping out the girls of the group while unnerving some of the guys.

The one known as Kabuto continued. "You've made quite an impression. For you see, these exams make everyone tense, and you don't want to rub anyone in the wrong way right now."

Kabuto shrugged his shoulders and continued in a condescending tone. "You can't help it. I mean, how could you know how things work, since you're all just rookies?"

"So I take it that this isn't the first time that you've taken the exams?" Sakura asked the older kid.

"Yes, and as a matter of fact, this'll be my seventh time," Kabuto answered. That comment earned an attentive look from the lazy shougi-player. "Well, they're held only twice a year, so this would make it my fourth year here."

It was then that the blond-haired shinobi relaxed on a wall to begin meditating. He still kept an ear on Kabuto's discourse on the true reason for hosting the Chuunin exams by pulling out some of his highly suspicious "ninja info cards" that were chakra-encoded with detailed information. It was obvious to Naruto that Iwagakure was not in the fold of candidates on account of what happened during the last Great Shinobi War. It was because of his father that he might have a bounty on his head if he were to even set foot in Stone Country or be a target of assassination within his own village during the duration of the exams…that was if they discovered his true identity. Kirigakure was in shambles on account of their civil situation, but why Kumogakure had not shown was a complete mystery to the blue-eyed jinchuuriki. He would worry about that later.

It was intriguing to him, but what made his ears twitch was when Sasuke asked if he had detail on the individual shinobi that were taking the exam.

"I might have something on everyone," Kabuto remarked. "You have someone special in mind?"

"Yeah," Sasuke said. "They are Rock Lee from Konoha and Sabaku no Gaara."

"How about Uzumaki Naruto from Konoha as well?" Shino asked which caused the crew to turn their heads at him.

'_You could've asked me…'_ Naruto thought as he closed his eyes again.

"Oh, so you know their names. That makes it easy." Kabuto filtered through his deck of shinobi dossiers and pulled out three cards. "Here they are."

He laid them out one at a time. "Okay…First…Rock Lee." With a bit of chakra, the profile on the taijutsu specialist was revealed. "He's about a year older than you guys. His taijutsu greatly improved in the past twelve months. For his mission experience, he has completed eleven C-rank and twenty D-rank missions. His jounin-sensei is Maito Gai and his teammates are Tenten and Hyuuga Neji…"

Naruto opened an eye and looked down at the small picture. _'So, that was the Hyuuga-teme that we came across before we got here…I wonder if he's related to Hinata-chan…'_ He thought as his gaze moved to the Hyuuga heiress and then back to the card.

"Next we have Sabaku no Gaara," Kabuto stated as he pushed a bit of chakra to expose one of the Sand Siblings. "He comes from Sunagakure no Sato and is in your age group. For his mission experience, he has completed eight C-rank missions and…one B-rank mission. It also says here that he always comes out of the missions unharmed."

The Rookie Nine looked at Kabuto with incredulity while Shikamaru spoke for the group. "No way…That guy's done a B-rank mission as a genin and came out without a scratch?"

'_I can tell that there's something special about that guy…'_ was the thought that both Naruto and Sasuke had running through their minds.

"And finally, we have Uzumaki Naruto-kun," Kabuto continued as Naruto's dossier showed up…with his "post-transformation" picture.

'_Now how in the blue hell did they get a picture of me like that?'_ Naruto was…mentally irate, although he did not show it on the outside, save for gritting together his fangs. _'There's got to be a leak in the system and I will _personally_ fill in that crack…'_

"Let's see…He's completed quite a number of D-rank missions, one C-rank sub-mission and…two A-ranked missions, with one completed before he became a genin…"

All eyes turned to Naruto, who was slightly peeved for having them pry into his mission experience. "Listen, I don't want to talk about the details of that mission. Only know the fact that I stopped a traitor from getting his hands on an important document. The rest is classified."

"Okay," Kabuto continued as the group moved their gazes to him. "His jounin-sensei is the infamous Copy-Ninja, Hatake Kakashi-san, and his teammates are Uchiha Sasuke-kun and Haruno Sakura-san. His abilities, aside from the **Kage Bunshin no Jutsu** and Academy-level techniques are currently unknown; however his ninjutsu skills have greatly improved…"

Squad Seven unnoticeably flinched that Naruto's abilities might be uncovered. One thought ran through their heads at the same time: _'Oh shit…I hope that he doesn't know about the Mokuton ability…'_

"But once again, it is only speculation. Like I said, the information that I have is incomplete."

The blond-haired jinchuuriki and his team relaxed a bit before Kabuto spoke about how this year's crop of candidates would have a lot of potential, while disrespecting the Hidden Sound ninja at the same time. Said shinobi dashed through the crowd and attacked Kabuto.

One of the Oto-nin was a kunoichi with knee-length black hair and dark eyes. The second Oto-nin was a young man with dark, upturned, spiky hair and holes in his hands, who had just thrown two kunai in Kabuto's direction (in which the glasses-wearing shinobi promptly dodged). The third ninja was wrapped up in bandages with only his left eye showing and had a sound cannon attached to his right arm, along with a furry cape on his back. It was the third shinobi that launched a blow in front of Kabuto's face, and even though it missed, the sound waves from the punch caused Kabuto's ears to ring as he vomited.

Sakura and Naruto ran to check on Kabuto when an explosion was heard in the front of the classroom.

"All right you baby-faced degenerates…Pipe down and listen-up!"

Those in attendance turned face to see, emerging from the smoke, a dozen of chuunin and jounin, and at the fore was an intimidating man with a scarf over his head with the Konoha symbol engraved on it. What made him terrifying were the two scars over his face and the tomblike look in his eyes.

"It's time to begin," said the man in the dark trench-coat. "I'm Morino Ibiki, your proctor. And from this moment…your worst enemy…"

XXXXXXXXXX

Naruto took his seat next to Hinata (who had been blushing furiously) and two tables in front of Sakura. He turned to his left and saw a familiar face as a sentinel for the written exam. "Oi, Haku-chan…" He waved his hand frantically while the ice-user smiled and waved back.

"Good luck, Naruto-kun," Haku said, smiling. "Do your best."

With a nod he turned to listen to the objectives and rules of the test. The parameters were pretty steep for one who did not look underneath the underneath. All he had to do was gather information without getting caught. Luckily, his little cloudburst could act as a potential scout on top of his head just like Kiba's pup.

'_I guess I'll make amends for what I said and give ol' Dog-Breath some answers,'_ he thought. He had then wondered about his squad. _'I'm not sure how Sakura will relay me some information, and I know that Sasuke-teme could use his Sharingan to copy the movements of hands on paper…'_

'_See, now you're maturing, Naruto-shishou,'_ replied his ocher-hued kit. _'It is best to aid a fellow comrade, and I'll be sure to send and receive some information in Aka-chan's direction.'_

'_Since when have you started to call me master, Dosha-chan?'_ Naruto asked, very perplexed. _'And when did you start to call Kiba's pup Aka-chan? And when did you start to pry into my thoughts?'_

'_Since now,'_ Doshaburi replied with his foxy grin.

To Naruto, having two voices in his mind was going to be…very awkward…

XXXXXXXXXX

"Now, then," Ibiki announced, "it is time to administer the tenth and final question. But, before I give you the final question, there are some more rules that need to be stated…"

Due to the use of his shadow clones reading up on pamphlets, books and scrolls beforehand, Naruto was able to answer seven of the nine questions thus far; two from Kiba (via pup-talk from Dosha-chan and Akamaru), one from Hinata-chan, three on his own and a guess on the seventh.

Sakura faired well and answered correctly all nine questions for the moment. Ino tried to force herself into her mind with one of her clan techniques but was warded off by a very pissed off Inner Will via mental bashing.

Sasuke activated his doujutsu to copy the hand movements of some of the people around him to gather his responses. He answered six of the nine questions on his own.

When Ibiki mentioned that there was one more rule on top of the grilling parameters, everyone that was still in attendance inwardly groaned.

The 'hopeless rule' stated they had the option to answer the final question. If they did not want to accept, then their score would be reduced to zero and that would mean that the candidate, along with his or her team would be out of the Chuunin Exam. They could return next year to take the test again. On the opposite end was another rule: should they choose to answer the final question and get it wrong, then they could kiss good-bye to their chances of ascension in rank. To the worried genin, it was a no-win situation as some cried out in protest.

'_**Fascinating…'**_ Kyuubi thought to himself as he grinned. He was rather…intrigued by how the human was able to mess with the head of the weak-minded so easily. _**'So, boy, what will you do…? See through his deception or save your own neck with your tail between your legs…?'**_

"Those who do not wish to answer the final question raise your hands," Ibiki said. "After we verify your number, you will be free to leave, along with your teammates."

The elf-eared Naruto looked to see many of the genin raise their hands and file out. He was astounded by how many could crack under psychological pressure. Had he not communed with his tenant before, then he would probably be cracking up at that particular moment. The numbers whittled down to seventy-two candidates…twenty-four teams of three.

"This is your last chance. Anyone who wishes to not answer may choose to leave."

Hinata was surprised when Naruto stood up, but he had a determined look in his ocean-blue eyes as he bore through the proctor with his piercing gaze. "Screw that! I'm not running away from any challenges like some coward. I don't know about the rest of these people, but I'm going to answer the question for the sake of my team." A grin appeared and threatened to split his face. "I will be Hokage someday, and I won't care if I have to stay a genin forever."

'_This guy…the dobe's got a lot of spirit,'_ thought the raven-haired Uchiha with a smirk of relief on his face.

'_Naruto-kun, that's why I admire you,'_ Hinata thought with a small smile on her face.

'_It's my hero in action…'_ Haku thought while she doodled in a little iceberg on the corner of the paper attached to the clipboard. _'You always astound me, Naruto-kun…'_

'_You're one crazy fool, Naruto…'_ Sakura thought as she shook her head. She looked around and noticed that some of the foreign kunoichi had small hearts in their eyes for her teammate. _'And it looks like you picked up foreign fangirls, to boot…It_ must _be the pointy elf-ears…'_

'_**He's a clueless pimp, but he's okay with me. Go Naruto-senpai…Shannaro!'**_ her Inner Will yelled at the top of her lungs.

"Are you sure about this, kid? This decision will impact your life in the future, you know." The head ANBU interrogator attempted to coax the blond to cave in, but his determination was unwavering.

"I'm not going to take back my words," Naruto said with a fang-toothed smile as he sat down. "That is my nindou—my ninja way."

The words of encouragement gave the seventy-two chuunin hopefuls in the room some relief as their uncertainty was cleansed. He then noticed some of the genin kunoichi with a lustful eye on the blond loudmouth.

'_I guess that this is it…seventy-two,'_ Ibiki thought. _'And that kid got a pair of big, brass ones on him. I'll admit that he's interesting, all right…'_

"Well, in that case…" The ANBU interrogator smiled heartily. "Everyone here passes."

Some of the candidates face-planted while others had a look of disbelief etched onto their faces.

To ease the irritability of the group, Ibiki explained the true purpose of the exam, which was to learn how to gather information without being spotted. Since it was obvious that the questions could not be answered by genin, a couple of chuunin who knew the answers were placed into the crowd. Those who had done a poor job at cheating were instantly weeded out. Along with information gathering, the underlying factor of the pass-fail decision on a team-wide basis added to the mounting pressure of those who thought they were the weakest of the team links.

After showing the candidates his disfigured scalp, he told them all that information could have greater value than life at times, during missions and on the field of battle. He added that having misinformation was just as worse as not having any at all, and that could lead to the safety or death of one's own comrades or the fall of a village.

In his conclusion, he stated that those who only worry about themselves were not cut out to be chuunin to begin with, since a squad leader must learn how to put the need of the team ahead of themselves. That main idea behind taking the first exam was to test to see if a shinobi had the courage enough to accept the risks, dangers and matters of uncertainty when it came to missions.

'_Well that makes sense,'_ Sasuke thought after he explained. _'Who would've thought…?'_

"The first gate has been opened for you," Ibiki said. "And now I will officially end this first exam."

It was not until a few seconds later when a large ball crashed through the window. The large ball unraveled itself as a purple-haired lady, who was garbed in body mesh, an orange skirt, armor-like shin greaves and a tan overcoat, pinned up the banner with two kunai. The dark banner read as "Second Examiner, Mitarashi Anko."

Ibiki sighed. _'…Jumped the gun as usual…crazy woman…'_

"Heads up, boys and girls, this is no time to be celebrating!" shouted the hyperactive woman. "I'll be your next proctor, Mitarashi Anko."

Everyone looked at her as if he grew a second head.

'_This woman is battier than Naruto,'_ Sakura thought and then chuckled inwardly. _'I think that I can see him do something like that…'_

'_Great…'_ thought the somber Uchiha. _'First we get a sadist, and next we get a crazy nut-job. What else is in store?'_

"Ibiki, tell me that you didn't pass this many," Anko said. "Your first test must've been too easy."

"Or maybe," Ibiki said, poking his head around the banner. "We have a very good crop of candidates this year."

"Oh well, it won't matter, seeing that more than half will fail by the time I'm through with them," she said with a devilish smirk, which caused some to cringe. "All right, you maggots have had it easy so far, but things are going to be different come first thing tomorrow. I'll let your jounin-sensei know where to meet me…Dismissed…"

XXXXXXXXXX

(22 hours later…)

The genin who had made it past the first exam looked at the large, contained forest area with extremely large trees.

"Whoa," Naruto and his fox cub were at a loss for words when they looked at the undergrowth and high canopies. "What is this place?"

"This is where the second phase of the exam will take place," Anko answered. "This is the 44th battle training zone, but we normally call it…the Forest of Death. And you're going to find out why…"

'_A forest, huh? Our natural element, for we are kitsune by nature, ne Dosha-chan?'_ asked the blond wonder.

'_Right, Naruto-shishou,'_ responded his foxy companion. _'But we have to be careful, though. Who knows what kind of stuff is out there?'_

Anko was briefly lecturing when she saw Naruto looking off in no particular direction. "Hey kid…Pay attention!" She flung out a kunai from her jacket and flung it at the blond, only to catch it by the ring with his forefinger.

"Hey, watch it you crazy woman! I was just enjoying the scenery!" Naruto roared.

Anko vanished from view and reappeared behind the blue-eyed wonder. "My, my, it looks like we got a guy with a fiery attitude…" Her hands snaked around and onto his chest, which caused the boy to blush profusely. "Think you can watch me now?" Her tongue slithered to lick his earlobe.

Gaining back his complexion, the boy muttered under his breath, out of earshot of everyone save for the crazy lady, "Yeah, I'd like to watch you without that see-through mesh on…" _'Damn…Kyuubi-sama must be influencing me again…'_ His tenant was snickering…guilty as charged.

Anko was taken aback by having her innuendo shot back at her. "Well aren't you full of surprises, my little Naru-chan? I can tell that there won't be a dull moment with you around."

Naruto decided to counter, once again due to Kyuubi's influence. It was actually fun to mess around with Anko, even though she was crazy. "There isn't anything dull on me…well, except something smooth that's full of something else…"

Anko's eyes widened a bit and a blush crept on her face as she stammered.

"Gotcha…Naruto, one…Crazy Snake-Lady, none." Naruto had a foxy grin on his face as she went back to the front. "Don't worry. I'll pay attention this time."

'_I'm gonna get you, gaki,'_ she thought before she continued to explain the rules…with a phantom blush on her face.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Gate 12, 2:26 pm)

"Ano…Naruto," Sakura said, while placing the Ten Scroll into her pouch. "What did you say to Anko-sensei? You had her blushing and stammering every time she looked at you."

"Eh, don't worry about that Sakura," answered her blond-haired teammate. Doshaburi was just shaking his head.

'_Good grief…'_ the little cloudburst pawed at the dirt, waiting for the second exam to begin.

'_He probably promised to do something with Anko,'_ thought the dark-haired avenger with a grin. "Okay dobe, we need to make a plan of action before we go in and snatch a Chi Scroll."

"Why are telling me this, Sasuke? I thought you were the brains in the squad. I just run support with ninjutsu. I'm no tactician." Naruto placed his arms over his head and thought about the possibilities.

"But, you think on the fly, Naruto," Sakura spoke up. "That's your biggest strength. I think that you and Sasuke-kun can come up with a solid strategy."

"And since we have Doshaburi in our squad, you and he can smell trouble ahead of time, just like Kiba, which is an additional bonus," Sasuke commented. "Your special genjutsu are another bonus, Sakura, especially that Ivy Snare. I think that you should have input on the strategy as well."

Sakura's eyes lit up. _'He thinks I'm of importance…I must be in heaven…'_

Naruto snapped his fingers as he had a revelation. "I got an idea!"

XXXXXXXXXX

(Gate 20, 2:27 pm)

The Oto-nin wrapped in bandages, known as Kinuta Dosu, chuckled to himself. "…Time for us to carry out our orders in the open…"

'_Our target…'_ thought Abumi Zaku, the boy with the holes in his hands.

'_Is none other…'_ thought the female of the group, Tsuchi Kin.

'…_than Uchiha Sasuke,'_ all of them thought together.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Gate 15, 2:28 pm)

In front of Gate 15 was a group of ninja from Kusagakure. One of the ninja was long and lanky and had a feminine face and two had demonic looking faces.

"We'll target the rookies. They're easy prey," said one of the demonic faces.

The lanky one coolly remarked as "she" held up the straw hat and smiled. "We'll get their scroll from them in no time. And you know who we're after, right? Kukuku…" _'In due time, Sasuke-kun…'_ The effeminate figure licked 'her' lips with an elongated tongue.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, parts unknown, 2:29 pm)

A cat-masked ANBU guard had an unexpected chill crawling down his spine. He removed his mask and looked up at the sky, revealing his plated headgear with the Hidden Leaf symbol on it. He had dark eyes and short, brown hair.

'_It was no wonder why Hokage-sama wants us stationed out here…'_ he thought. _'Something tells me that trouble's brewing…'_

"Tenzou-san is there something wrong?" asked a fellow ANBU kunoichi with purple hair flowing around her mask.

The one known as Tenzou replied, "I…just have a bad feeling about something. Of what, I don't know, Yuugao-san…" He snapped back on his mask. _'We're in for a storm…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Main Gate, 2:30 pm)

"All right, you maggots!" yelled Anko. "Start your engines, because the second part of the Chuunin Exam is under way!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N**: Well, that's another chapter down. I hope that you've enjoyed the setup for the next chapter in line. Now would be a good time to look back at the top and answer the questions regarding future references. I would greatly appreciate it.

Quick trivia:

'_**That reptilian stench…'**__ Kyuubi said to his host. __**'I've smelled it before…'**_

This quote is a re-modified quote from what hit-release video game? I think that it's pretty obvious, but whoever gets it correct will have their names posted at the start of next chapter.

_The second round of the Chuunin trials is under way. Motivational plots from two teams coincide with Squad Seven, with Sasuke as the prime target. Two ANBU are stationed in the Forest of Death, waiting for an approaching storm. What lies behind honest intentions?_

_Jikai… (Next time…) on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Slither and Scurry: Bite of Indigestion…_

_Naruto: Someone would like to have a word with you, snake-teme…_

_DHO: So…what are you about to do, Naruto?_

_Naruto: I'll show this bastard no mercy! That's what I'll do…_

Romaji Guide:

**Inu-Ibuki**: Dog-Breath; Naruto's nickname for Kiba

**Kitsune-kun**: Fox-Boy; Kiba's nickname for Naruto

**Shougi**: Japanese chess

**Kumogakure (no Sato)**: Hidden Cloud Village

**Otogakure (no Sato)**: Hidden Sound Village

**Shishou**: master

**Ten**: heaven

**Chi**: earth


	11. Slither and Scurry: Bite of Indigestion

**A/N**: Once again, greetings to you all again and I hope that you have all been well.

The answer to the trivia question of the re-modified quote was Halo 2, specifically, the level "Oracle," where the Arbiter and the Covenant Elite forces first encounter the Flood in an abandoned Forerunner structure to take down the Heretic leader.

It was said during the preceding cinema (entitled Juggernaut) from one of the leading officers, Rtas 'Vadumee, aptly nicknamed from the Halo fan-base as "Half-Jaw," due to the missing mandibles on the left side of his face. The scene occurs when the Grunts and Elites file into the structure.

Half-Jaw: (pauses and sniffs)

Arbiter: What is it?

_Half-Jaw: That stench…I've smelled it before…_

To those who don't know what I'm talking about, I apologize, but it is a pretty cool first-person shooter game, and you should definitely check it out, along with the rest of the Halo series…that is, if you have an X-Box or PC, of course.

To those that have answered correctly the quote:

**Naruto 21**, **taintedlegacy**, **Wildfire60**, **Dragonlord-ex, Power of Insanity**

**PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU BEGIN**: Like I had mentioned prior to this chapter, it is best that if you would leave suggestions or advice by private messaging or e-mail. Be sure to leave reviews for comments and concerns on the review slot, unless if you're willing to contact me personally. That is all…unless you would like to send me a PM personally regarding everything, then that too is fine by me.

Reviews: Once again, let me reiterate. Some of the reviews are getting a bit too short. Please expound upon your review besides "good work," "update soon," or anything that falls under those categories. I will give my undivided attention to those that have reviewed with more than just "update soon" and short comments like that. So far, I have hit the 50,000-hit mark, and I'm amazed that some would actually glance at the story before moving onto the next one.

Well, let's kick off this chapter…

_Saishuukai… (Last time…)_

_(Main Gate, 2:30 pm)_

"_All right, you maggots!" yelled Anko. "Start your engines, because the second part of the Chuunin Exam is under way!"_

_**Chapter Eleven**__: Slither and Scurry: Bite of Indigestion_

(Chuunin Exam, Opening Day)

All forty-four gates to the forest labyrinth flew open as all of the competitors dashed in haste, prowling for their soon-to-be victims. It was the beginning of the end for some, but the shining hope of new beginnings for others. That much was certain in the Shin no Mori…

XXXXXXXXXX

(Squad Eight)

Hinata, Kiba and Shino decided to set up a temporary campsite to catch clueless passers-by with their strategic arsenal of elementary traps. As they were setting up, their thoughts were everywhere and elsewhere, but their collective thoughts were focused on one particular individual…

Kiba could not help but having a mental tug-of-war with the green-eyed monster that was jealousy toward the ever-changing blond wonder. He had thought that Kitsune-kun was dense, goofy and did not have a clue about Hinata's feelings for him. He guessed that the "dead-last" was not so dumb after all, but that would not mean that the blond-haired kid would not be on the receiving end of a punch if he treated her wrongly. _That_ much was certain, since even though he had partial, one-sided feelings for the shy Hyuuga heiress, he tried his best to be an elder-brother figure to her.

The dog-user, as well as Akamaru, had also picked up a slight scent of fox coming from Kitsune-kun, coupled with the fact that the blue-eyed boy had now looked like his vulpine companion. He was undoubtedly an odd fellow, and he would have to keep an eye on him. Who _knew_ what he was packing? The info card from Kabuto-san mentioned that his ninjutsu skills have greatly improved. Unfortunately, that much was _uncertain_. But in any case, the dog-boy resolved that the "dead-last" was going down if or when he faced off against him, he and his little kit included. To Kiba, that almost felt like a guarantee.

XXXXXXXXXX

Shino was rather surprised by Naruto's…forwardness with his female teammate before the exam began, along with the apparent changes that he had undergone in the past two months. His muscle mass and height had greatly increased, along with acquiring pointed ears, enlarged fangs, profound whisker-marks, slit pupils, claw-like hands and shaggier hair. Adding those enhanced features to the "somewhat reserved" demeanor and the new black jumpsuit with the orange racing stripes and orange-clothed hitai-ate, one would think that he was an entirely different person altogether.

However, from the mind of Aburame Shino, only one individual in the entire village had neon-blond hair and irises that resembled the deep oceans of torment and woe…as well as a taste for the color of "kill-me" orange. Shino had found it rather puzzling and illogical for someone—especially a genin—to undergo drastic, physical changes in such a brief time period. _That_ much was certain to the one who based his explanations on premises and rationale.

The symbiotic kikai-host surmised that the blue-eyed wonder was the focal point of a well-kept secret, on account of two possible reasons: 1) the way the adults who were around eighteen years or older looked upon his former classmate with inherent scorn and refused to explain the reason regarding the issue; and 2) the seemingly "classified" matter regarding the A-class mission that Naruto had completed prior to earning his genin rank. The fox cub was an outlier to the plausible equation, but it could weave into the well-guarded, enigmatic person that was Uzumaki Naruto. That much was _uncertain_ for the moment.

XXXXXXXXXX

Hinata was on Cloud Nine, humming to herself as she was setting up traps without flaw. She had enjoyed her time training with both Lee-san and Naruto-kun, and she felt as if she was already metamorphosing into something…different from the rest. She wondered if her path was altering for the betterment of her strength to lead the Hyuuga to a new revolution of sorts. Only time would tell. That much was _uncertain_ to the Hyuuga heiress.

While she was being taught by both her crush and the chibi-Green Beast, she had come to the painful realization that the Juuken was not the so-called "perfect, be-all-end-all" solutions to combat. Every form of taijutsu, ninjutsu and genjutsu had a flaw, and when it was found, it would be very easy to exploit.

She had found out the hard way as Lee dangerously picked apart her stance while testing her in a taijutsu bout, along with discovering the infamous "Hyuuga blind spot." Lee suffered a few closed pressure points along the chakra network, but that did not hinder his abilities whatsoever.

Her crush, on the other hand, demonstrated to her on the most glaring weakness: long-ranged offense. She was either blown sky-high before she was caught by a clone or nearly drowned since she did not know how to perform the **Hakkeshou Kaiten**. _That_ much was certain.

Instead of being chewed out and berated like she normally would while at home, Lee-san and Naruto-kun had recommended for her to create a style that was suitable for her lithe form and personality. With a bit of secret research from her family archives and the library, she had developed a synthesis between Tai Chi and an archaic form of Ba Gua-style Juuken to balance with the Suiton ninjutsu that she had learned. She would be able to glide and dance along her "circle of harmony" with serene grace while delivering crippling blows with bursts of chakra from her palms, elbows and lower limbs, or, while having a somewhat large canteen tucked by her side, striking the target with a lash of water when least expected or block an opponent's incoming blows if she had not the time to defend.

In short, it was one of her trump cards; a beautiful, deadly dance that she had yet to name, aside from her arsenal of Suiton ninjutsu. _That_ much was certain. With her doujutsu, the _**Byakugan**_, as a beneficial asset, her style of choice was close to impeccable. Even her crush and his shadow clones never withstood a chance at the unnamed form in a test-run, hitting the former with an accidental Juuken blow to his chest. She was practically crying rivers when she had struck the real one, but he miraculously recovered at a phenomenal pace and told her not to worry. He told her that he would always bounce back. _That_ much was certain. The Hyuuga heiress greatly wondered about that, since no one would be immediately on his or her feet after a chakra-enhanced palm to the pulmonary region. That was _etched_ into uncertainty.

Their thoughts were cut short when they sensed three hostile chakra signatures and Akamaru yipped, alerting the team of nearby intruders.

"Well, what'd ya know? It looks like we got company," Kiba coolly remarked. It was evident that they were going to get their hands on a scroll identical to theirs.

XXXXXXXXXX

Perched on the canopy above were three ninja with scuba-like respirator masks and tan jumpsuits. The four vertical lines on their abnormal headgear indicated that they were Rain-nin from Amegakure. Without a spoken word, they had leapt down to challenge the white-eyed girl, the puppy boy and the creepy kid with sunglasses.

Suddenly, they were pegged with a few kunai into their backs while a net enclosed around them and hoisted them up thirteen feet in the air. From the pain and shock of the surprise tactics, they screamed in horror, leaving Squad Eight to pick up a spare Chi scroll and dash off to find more targets…and potential barterers.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Squad Ten)

Squad Ten felt that it was rather wasteful of their energy to go all out in the first few days, so they had decided to kick back for a brief moment while Chouji was stuffing his gullet with heart-clogging barbecue potato chips.

"We haven't been out here almost five minutes and you want to eat now!?" screeched the bossy female of the group. She had already been complaining about the five-day survival exercise, stating that a girl has to look her very best. Unfortunately, Yamanaka Ino was more interested in fashion trends, superficial good looks and chasing after boys instead of the ninja life, even though she knew a few of her clan techniques.

"I need to eat to keep up my strength, Ino," Chouji answered between munches. He was…just that hungry. If one happened to look "underneath the underneath," then one would know that Akimichi Chouji stored extra reserves of energy potential for any incoming scuffles. He, however, was more so of a cuisine connoisseur and kindred spirit than a fighter, but when the time came, Chouji would not hold any mercy when it came to harming his friends or eating the last morsel of food.

Lounging at the edge of the forested area (as well as tuning out Ino and Chouji's antics), Shikamaru was calculating possible scenarios at light-speed, but most of the conjectures were based on matters of uncertainty. While his brain meandered through possible circumstances, his thought paused on a certain blond-haired shinobi, former classmate and friend.

Naruto had surprisingly changed, both physically and…somewhat emotionally. He had a fox-hound, and he looked just like his little fox cub. _That_ much was certain. From Kabuto's cards, it was pure speculation that Naruto's ninjutsu skills increased, but the lazy shinobi could easily confirm it when Naruto approached Asuma-sensei for lessons in wind-element training. From pure analysis of Naruto's skills, he possessed three elemental affinities, but he had only seen two firsthand—wind and earth manipulation. The third element had yet to be seen by the public eye. Shikamaru assumed that if a ninja could combine two elemental affinities, then he or she would develop a new type of manipulation, thus gaining a special kekkei genkai. He wondered if Naruto could be able to combine wind and earth to make a type of sand or dust material. The calculations would be difficult if the blond wonder were to create something along the lines of sand or dust manipulation.

That was the least of his worries. What was troubling to the mind of the lazy genius were the odd and hate-filled looks that all of the adults gave him when they were walking to the Forest of Death. His thought capacity was a bit broader than the stoic Shino, so he attempted to mesh together the mystery. Unfortunately, he came up with inconclusive results as well.

'_Something just isn't adding up. I need more clues,'_ Shikamaru thought as he sighed. _'Why does Naruto have to be such a strange guy…?'_

He would have to pause that ten-second thought when he felt foreign signatures approaching.

"Everyone, hide," Shikamaru said, pulling his bewildered friend and Ino into the bushes.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Squad Seven)

Squad Seven had been testing their borrowed radio transmitters when they heard the panic-filled screams in the distance. The fun had just begun.

'_Well, someone just got nailed,'_ Sasuke thought as he adjusted the frequency setting.

Sakura was slightly mortified by the sound. "This is starting to give me the creeps…" The green-eyed kunoichi paused when she thought she heard the pitter-patter of many legs coming from the tree behind her. She slowly turned around to spot a five-foot millipede-like insect. The pink-haired bookworm screamed in horror before Naruto pegged the large bug with a kunai into the thorax region.

"All right…grub!" Naruto yelled with mirthful delight. He passed by Sakura and walked over to the tree to retrieve his knife and the insect carcass. Examining the body, he concluded with satisfaction. "This thing is packing loads of protein." With a couple of handseals, Naruto whispered, "**Hyouton: Hyouketsu no Jutsu**," and blew on the bug with an icy breath to preserve it. He whipped out an empty storage scroll to stash it away into a vacant slot.

"Naruto," Sakura said with a lace of disgust in her voice. "I am _not_ eating that."

"It'll taste better than our protein ration bars. Trust me, Sakura," Naruto remarked. "Besides, once you roast this thing over a fire, you would think that you're having a crunchy steak." Doshaburi nodded while licking his tongue across his muzzle. They were going to eat bountifully for the next few days in the wilderness.

On the contrary, Sakura's face took on a green hue while Sasuke pegged two slightly large snakes in a bush with a couple of kunai. They were not going to eat a bug, even though it was about the same size as them.

"Freeze 'em and stuff 'em, dobe," Sasuke said. "We'll get some fish when we get to the creeks." _'And besides,'_ he added mentally, _'I'd rather eat a snake than to eat_ that _thing…'_

Feeling a bit of pressure in his bladder, Naruto stood up. "All right, but first I have to…handle some business…" The fox-boy cheekily grinned. He was about to turn to relieve himself on a nearby tree when his green-eyed teammate rushed and bopped him on the head, leaving a lump of decent proportions.

"Naruto, what are you trying to do in front of a lady!? Go and find a bush or something! I don't want to see that…" _'Well, maybe Sasuke-kun's…'_ she thought as she took a fleeting glance at the dark-haired avenger with a small blush on her visage. She had then shaken out the perverted thoughts from her head.

"Okay, but watch out for Dosha-chan, will ya?" Naruto asked while rubbing his scalp. The pinkette nodded while stroking the little cloudburst's coat.

XXXXXXXXXX

As Naruto relieved himself, his nose caught a whiff of unknown individuals rapidly approaching. He slowly pushed down on the transmitter to alert his teammates.

"Guys," he whispered quietly into his obscured headset. "We got two blind mice with one going astray to your area."

"Copy that, dobe. Engage," Sasuke said over the receiver. "Be sure to keep quiet and try not to humiliate them too easily."

The blue-eyed wonder had a smirk lining his face. "Roger that, _captain_." The 'captain' part was added sarcastically.

XXXXXXXXXX

Another team from the Hidden Rain appeared from the roof of the forest and attempted to jump the blond-haired kid by surprise.

One of the members stabbed "Naruto" with a kunai. The blue-eyed wonder started to fall as he changed into a heavy log. Said heavy nodule of wood landed on a trigger-trap, which caught the two Ame-nin off their guard. Both had been hung in the air by their ankles in nooses.

Once they were securely caught, the second trap activated. A barrage of kunai came from out of nowhere and grazed the cloth of their jumpsuits, which led to two occurrences: 1) their underwear was exposed; and 2) one of the knives had been fortunate to slice through one of the Rain-nin's pouches that contained an extra Heaven scroll.

Naruto appeared from behind a tree and picked up the unnecessary scroll from its landing spot. Even though he and his squad did not need it, he decided to stash it in his pouch for safekeeping. The more scrolls they could find, the lesser the competition, he concluded.

"Thanks for the scroll, guys," Naruto said as he turned to walk away from the breathless, stupefied ninja. "Live life to the fullest and hang by the moment." He threw a nonchalant hand-wave without looking back. "Later."

XXXXXXXXXX

Sasuke and Sakura were in the midst of engagement with the third member of the wayward Rain-nin squad. Due to Sasuke's scrutinizing eye, his disguise was a very poor **Henge** of the dobe. The teki-nin was a southpaw, indicative of the shuriken holster on his left leg, whereas the blond wonder was right-handed. The pupils were not slit and the whisker-marks were poorly misshapen. Had the dobe not awakened his "bloodline," the raven-haired avenger would have compared the Rain-nin's transformation skills to the "former" blond idiot (even though he had his moments).

The enemy Ame-nin "melted" into the ground and disappeared. It was unfortunate for him that the Uchiha could see the chakra that he was emanating from underground and the pink-haired girl was a sensitive chakra-reader. They were not fooled in the slightest bit in his next attack.

As he emerged from the earth, Sasuke finished with his handseals for a weak fire attack. He yelled, "**Katon: Hinotama no Jutsu**!" and blew the dwarfed fireball toward the Rain-nin's scalp. The target's hair caught fire and ran around frantically to put out the growing flame in his hair. With a few handseals he created some water and doused his hair.

He turned to the pompous kid and the little girl with narrowed eyes. "You're going to pay for that! Now give me your scroll!" The elder ninja pulled out a kunai and sprinted toward the two. Sasuke was about to unleash a volley of electricity when something else stopped the enraged Rain-ninja.

"**Doton: Daichi Kobu no Jutsu**!" A large slab of rock, in the form of a fist, collided into the enemy's stomach, which let the wind out of his sails. The Ame-nin flew back from the inertia and crashed into a tree, rendering him unconscious.

Naruto jumped down from one of the trees and appeared before his team. "Sorry that it took too long," he said with a foxy grin. "I kind of got held up." His teammates halted his movement by holding up a kunai to warn him that if he were an imposter, then they would be ready to dispose of him at any moment. The little cloudburst decided to smell the possible intruder.

"Let's see," the little fox-hound started. "Dirt…ramen…and fox…He is indeed the genuine Naruto-shishou."

"We could've just used communion, Dosha-chan," Naruto said as he sighed. He wondered why his teammates had become so edgy when they knew good and well that he was taking care of the rest of the Rain-nin squad.

"Well, I could've handled him before you showed up, dobe," remarked the raven-haired genius as he brushed off the dirt from his shirt. "Just because you have power doesn't mean that you can flaunt it willy-nilly."

"Well, isn't that the pot calling the kettle black, Sasuke?" retorted the blond-haired genin as he narrowed his eyes to the dark-haired avenger. "I guess that the same should apply to you, too."

"No, I'm just stating what you told me before," answered the dark-eyed Uchiha while he shrugged boastfully. "Besides, you shouldn't hog all the glory…and using everything now will just spoil the fun, is all."

"Now you're sounding hypocritical, teme!" Naruto shot back. He was slightly chagrined that _Sasuke_ out of all people was telling him not to "bask in the limelight." He was dead-last in just about every subject matter with the exception to stealth. Sasuke held the highest in just about everything else. Maybe it was his time to shine for once, instead of the "glory-hogging" Uchiha. "I figured that we should knock him out instead of frying him!"

Sasuke glared at the dobe. He knew that it was an exercise, but he wanted to finish off the Rain-nin post-haste on account of what the future might bring. He also did not want to be upstaged by someone lower to him. "I thought that it would be for the best, dobe," he said.

Naruto was about to open his mouth when the pink-haired Haruno held out a hand to impede Naruto's approach to the dark-eyed Uchiha.

Sakura felt that the bickering had to stop, so she decided to run interference and nip the situation in the bud. "Naruto, Sasuke-kun, knock it off. We are a _team_ and that means we do everything as _one_. Teamwork is essential to get this part of the exam accomplished, and from this moment on, let's just try to keep our heads." She turned to where they could see her face darken to a ghastly expression, which slightly bothered the two boys. "Don't make me unleash my Inner Will and some of her **Kage Gen'ei** upon you…"

Naruto and Sasuke nervously gulped while Doshaburi was cowering in dread and decided to call it a truce to keep the in-fighting to a bare minimum. They neither did not know nor wanted to find out about her bloodline capabilities. Inner-Sakura was scary, but she mentioned that she had henchmen to boot…They shook their heads to try and not fathom what type of hell would be unleashed upon the land. However, little did they know that Sakura was calling a bluff to get everyone to settle down. She never had the chance to finish reading on how to draw out Shadow Phantoms from the Shadow Universe.

"This is a lesson to be learned," Sasuke said. "All in all, we can't trust our eyes…"

"But we can trust our noses," Naruto interrupted, which made Sasuke and Sakura turn to him. "Sigh…I would've thought that Kakashi-sensei could teach us how to channel chakra into your ears and nose, so I guess now would be as good a time as ever. Here's what we have to do…"

XXXXXXXXXX

(Squad Eight, several hours later)

The members of Squad Eight looked on, at a reasonable distance, in silent horror and nausea when a team of Rain-nin was crushed by a red-haired kid that could manipulate sand. Blood and gore spewed forth from the sandy encasings. The power that he exuded was unreal for any genin of their age group. Shino crouched quietly while bugs were moving about his body in disarray and Akamaru was hiding away in Kiba's jacket. Hinata carefully examined the boy's inner chakra coils and noticed…a tan-hued chakra intermingling with his normal blue energy. She pondered if the presence of red chakra in Naruto-kun's system had any connection to the red-haired Suna-nin.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Day Two)

In the past day, a select handful of teams arrived prior to the end time. Gaara, Temari and Kankuro arrived in a record-breaking four hours. Eight hours later, Squad Eight managed to get into the tower.

Much to everyone's dismay, someone had to ruin all the fun…as well as the exam…

XXXXXXXXXX

"Pardon the interruption ma'am, but there's a problem," said one of the proctors as he appeared evanescently in one large poof.

Mitarashi Anko was eating dango and slurping down red bean soup when she looked at the proctor with the glasses. "What is it this time? Don't you see that I'm enjoying my dango?" Mealtime with her dumplings on a stick was most precious to her, and she did not want it to be ruined.

"There are corpses, Anko-san. Three of them…" The tone in his voice held a grim overtone, which made Anko realize that it was, in fact, serious. "Something strange has happened to them, so you should see for yourself."

After a brisk walk to the murder site, the head examiner was appalled by the disfigured Kusa team. One woman in particular had her face completely removed. It was then that Anko quickly surmised that what had happened to those three ninja had been the work of her former sensei, defected affiliate of Konoha, Orochimaru. _'Why the hell would he be here at the Chuunin Exam…?'_ she thought grimly. _'We've got no time to lose! We have to stop that madman!'_

She quickly turned to face the three proctors that were standing before her: the one from before with glasses, one with shaggy dark hair and a bandage across his face named Hagane Kotetsu, and one wearing a bandana with a dark-haired bang hanging on the right side of his face known as Kamizuki Izumo.

"We've got big trouble!" shouted the Serpent Lady. The three examiners had a questioning glance directed toward her. "Well, what are you waiting for!? Get moving. Tell Hokage-sama exactly what's happened here. Also alert the ANBU to get some more backup while I go in after these guys. Now _go_!"

XXXXXXXXXX

(Shin no Mori, location unknown)

The wolf-masked ANBU, Tenzou, received a message from one of his **Moku Bunshin** regarding the situation at hand. He turned to his partner, who was sharpening her katana on a whetstone.

"Yuugao-san, there's…a bit of a problem," the wood-user mentioned with a serious undercurrent in his voice. "Someone has sabotaged the exam and we need to find the violators. Let's go."

"Hai," she replied before they vanished into thin air.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Squad Seven)

In the brief tutoring session for the last several hours, Sasuke and Sakura had only gained a slight control over their enhanced smell and hearing, but it would have to make due for the time being.

They were traveling deeper into the woods when they heard multiple branches snapping at roughly the same time. A shot of wind sliced into the side of Naruto's right cheek as he turned around before a large wind tunnel carried him away, along with his little cloudburst.

"Waaah! Help meee…" His shouts were fading away into the forest canopy. His radio lost connection on account of going beyond the radius of frequency. _'Kuso…caught by my own jutsu…Daitoppa…'_

"Naruto!" both Sakura and Sasuke yelled as they paused on the ground to face the direction of the possible teki-nin.

Emerging from the dark wood was a creepy, female ninja from the Hidden Grass Village…or so she appeared to be.

"So," began the effeminate Grass-nin. "You want to get your hands on our Earth scroll, am I right?" "She" pulled out the scroll from a hidden pouch. "Since you three do have a Heaven scroll in your possession…"

Sakura and Sasuke looked on in disbelief and disgust when the ninja's mandible snapped open and an elongated tongue wrapped around the scroll. The ninja proceeded to swallow the parchment whole.

After consuming the scroll, the ninja calmly said while looking down, "Now, let's begin the fight for the scrolls. In the end, only one of us will have both scrolls…" The ninja looked up to expose "her" snake-like eyes. "And the other will die…"

The palpable ki made Sasuke and Sakura's death flash before their eyes. The focused killer intent caused both Leaf-nin to vomit their stomach contents and shake in fear. They could only watch helplessly by the image of death before their eyes.

'_What the hell_ is _this person?'_ thought the raven-haired Uchiha. He knew for a fact that they had to get away or they were going to succumb to their demise.

'_I…can't…move…We have to run!'_ Sakura screamed in her mind. Unfortunately, her body and mind were in conflict with one another.

'_**This shit is intense…We've got to get away from this Kami-forsaken creep! Snap out of it, pinky…Shannaro!'**_ her Inner Will roared.

XXXXXXXXXX

"How was it that we were blind-sighted, Dosha-chan?" the elf-eared genin asked to his dust-colored fox as he gathered his bearings and stood up. "I didn't detect a thing!"

"I have not the slightest idea, Naruto-shishou," Doshaburi replied as he was shaking off the pain. "The enemy was far off my radar as well."

'**Gaki, you need to pay more attention from now on,'** the Demon Lord huffed in partial disgust to his host. **'Carelessness could cost you your life, you know.'**

'_Oh…so_ now _you want to speak up after all this time…'_ Naruto retorted to his formerly unwanted guest.

'**I thought you were doing fine before…and nice prank on the Rain-nin by the way. Very clever,'** Kyuubi said, grinning like a Cheshire cat. **'But it was still second-rate!'**

While Naruto and his spiritual occupant were chatting away, a dark shadow loomed over them.

Doshaburi's eyes bugged out of its sockets. "Sh-Shishou, l-look out!"

Snapping out of his trance, Naruto turned to take in the view of a sixty-foot-long python. His eyes mimicked those of his ocher-hued buddy.

"That is one…big…snake…." Naruto was beyond belief at what he had seen.

The behemoth serpent lashed out at the two with its fangs as they barely dodged by the skin of their teeth. Milliseconds afterward, a giant tail came from out of nowhere and wrapped around the blue-eyed wonder.

He struggled to break free from its coils but it was useless. Even with his enhanced strength, he still could not get out of its clutches.

'_Don't tell me that this is the end…'_ he thought to himself as he was engulfed by the maw of the giant reptile. The scaly beast slithered away to parts unknown while his fox-companion was stricken with shock. It could not be happening. Was his owner really gone?

"Naruto-shishou…" Doshaburi was taken over by sadness, and that woe turned to rage. He was going to enjoy this large meal as his body began to glow white.

"I shall avenge my friend…**Tama Senkou**!" The sanctified aura engulfed around the dust-hued fox before it began to take on a reddish tint. Pulling a bit more of the blessed youki given to him by the fox-lord, his irises changed from cold-gray to blood-crimson and his killer intent flooded the area.

"**Tama Tosshin**!" The little fox tore into the ground as he began to chase after the large serpent.

XXXXXXXXXX

The effeminate Grass-nin was gazing at the two pools of blood near a branch with two kunai lodged into it. The ninja was amazed by their determination to run for their lives. Who would have thought that they conquered fear with pain?

'_And so the chase begins…Sasuke-kun…'_ the estranged shinobi thought as "she" followed the paths of blood. This ninja loved to pursue wary prey.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sakura and her crush were holding one another, out of breath, as they were examining the surrounding area with their newly acquired enhanced smell and hearing from behind one of the many trees. When the adrenaline settled, both gathered their bearings and quickly pulled away, albeit Sakura was reluctant to stop clutching. They had then winced from the pain on account of the kunai embedded into their thighs.

"It…was crazy…but it worked…" Sakura whispered between breaths as she pulled out the knife and flinched from the slight throbbing. Luckily her gash was not as deep as the one that her crush had made into his upper leg.

"Sasuke-kun, you're hurt…" Her crush's hand reached for her mouth to shut it for the time being. He looked into her eyes with his Sharingan ablaze and made a silencing motion with his free hand.

He quickly looked about to find anything suspicious when both of their fear alarms screamed for a dire emergency. Sasuke and Sakura, who still had her mouth covered, turned around to stare faces-to-face with a gargantuan snake.

'_This can't get any worse!'_ they thought as they jumped to safety before the snake snapped off the branch where they were perched.

XXXXXXXXXX

It was only a few minutes inside the belly of the beast, and Naruto came to the realization that if he were to stay in here, then he would be quickly digested by acidic fluids.

'_Kuso,'_ Naruto cursed to himself as he tried to puncture the serpent's interior with one of his kunai. _'I'm not supposed to be snake chow. I'm going to be Hokage one day and I'm getting out here whether slither-puss likes it or not!'_

Naruto decided to calm himself down for a bit to analyze the possible strategies to get out. He could either mass-produce himself to give the walking leather boot a fit of indigestion or give it an ulcer with his Phantom Flame. He failed to think of a third possibility…

"No one hurts Naruto-shishou and gets away with it! **Tama Tosshin**!"

A yell came from the outside before a rumbling was felt by Naruto soon afterward. It was his companion, his little fox kit Doshaburi, ready to tango with a snake that could crush him in one fell tail swipe. He needed to get out of the snake's gut as soon as feasibly possible before his little cloudburst became as flat as a pancake. The elf-eared wonder put his hands together into the all-too-familiar cross-shaped handseal.

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**!" Naruto roared. A total of fifteen clones were needed to rupture the serpent from the inside out, killing it instantly.

Naruto and his duplicates landed in one large dog-pile in front of a relieved Doshaburi.

"Okay, guys now get off me," said the original, which had been unluckily at the bottom of the pile. "Or just dispel yourselves. Either one is fine by me. Take all day, why don't ya?"

XXXXXXXXXX

After launching a volley of shuriken into the carapace of the snake, it tumbled forward, dead.

Sasuke and Sakura had tried to their best ability to ward off and kill the snake. Much to their dismay, that was only the beginning…

The effeminate ninja slowly burst forth from the snake hide, leaving a bewildered Sakura and a stunned Sasuke.

While the shinobi was appearing forth in serpent gunk, "she" spoke. "You can never let down your guard for a single moment…"

The shinobi stood atop the snake carcass, looked on at Sasuke and continued in a slithery tone. "Prey need to strain their minds all the time, and run around…in the presence of its predator…" The freakishly long tongue slithered around "her" mouth region before the Kusa-nin snaked around the tree to get to the Uchiha.

Fortuitously, a few shuriken and a kunai halted "her" progress.

The effeminate Grass ninja, along with Sasuke and Sakura, turned to see the newest members of the soon-to-be fray.

"Naruto, you made it just in time! Thank goodness!" Sakura shouted. She breathed a sigh of relief. They might just pull through. Sasuke, however, was shaking in his ninja sandals.

'_What the hell is the dobe doing here?'_ he thought. _'He's no match for this…person…or thing…or whatever it is…'_

"It looks like you managed to fight off that big snake, Naruto-kun," said the Grass-nin in a smooth, nonchalant manner. "Her" fists were balled and "her" chin was resting on them. _'It looks like I underestimated the boy…and he could be a potential hazard in my plans…'_

'_So that was a summoned snake, huh?_' Naruto could taste the rage and bloodlust from his restricted tenant. He felt that familiar emotion from before and that could only mean one thing…

"You know," the blue-eyed wonder began, who was perched beside his foxy companion. "Someone that I know would like a word with you, snake-teme. But before I do…" He pulled out a snake's head and tossed it at the coiled Kusa-nin. "Apparently, your summon bit off more than he could chew. He had a bit of an indigestion problem…"

"Naruto, don't try to be the hero and show off!" Sasuke shouted, interrupting the dobe. "He's way out of our league! Run away!"

Naruto looked at his disheveled teammate and scoffed at him. "Since when have _I_ seen _you_ run away? And yes, I know he's out of our league. In fact…" He turned his gaze to the effeminate Kusa-nin. "Why don't you show us your true form…Orochimaru…?"

The one identified as Orochimaru hummed. "It looks like you know more than what you let on, Naruto-kun…kukuku…I'm impressed." He ripped off the face of the Grass-nin to reveal his pale face and snake-like eyes, which gave everyone goose-bumps on the back of their necks. The killer intent surged around the forest, amplifying his terrifying look. "Now that you know who I am, I cannot let you leave here…alive…"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N**: This is another chapter down, and I hope that some of you enjoyed the length and detail. I decided to add a little spice to the notes guide. I hope that you like it. For the bottom notes on the Martial Arts Guide, I suggest that you read it. And I apologize for the tardiness of this chapter. I've been trying to get this written when I had time away from work and familial responsibilities. For my lateness, I will bestow upon you an omake at the end of the Author's Note.

_Orochimaru of the Sannin has arrived. What on earth is he planning? What does he have in store for Squad Seven?_

_Jikai… (Next time…) on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_The Snake that Bares Its Fangs…_

**Martial Arts Guide**:

**Tai Chi**, **tai chi chuan (Romanized)** or **tàijíquán (**太极拳**)**: This roughly translates into "supreme ultimate fist" or "boundless fist." It is an internal Chinese martial art that is used to aid in soft martial techniques or used to increase longevity, just to name a couple of usages. There are two forms of core training: solo form and pushing hands. Solo form focuses on maintaining one's center of gravity. The ability of pushing hands makes it almost similar to Juuken, but the palm strikes deal with how to move off the other opponent's center of gravity.

The ability to use Tai Chi as a form of self-defense in combat is said to be the most effective proof of a student's understanding of the art's principles. The study of Tai Chi martially is the study of appropriate change in response to outside forces; the study of yielding and blending with outside force rather than attempting to meet it with opposing force.

Here, I find this martial art style meaningful to Hinata, seeing that Tai Chi is representative of the belief of her finding inner peace and appropriate balance, along with symbolic change and adaptation. I also believe that Juuken and Tai Chi could be blended together, since the Gentle Fist style is based on **Bāguàzhǎng**, or **Eight Trigrams Palm** (another internal Chinese martial art). In essence, it would be Hinata "circle walking" from **Ba Gua** while adapting to the oncoming force of her opponents with open chakra-enhanced palm strikes (along with elbows, lower leg strikes, etc.) from **Tai Chi**. It would be a bit too long to discuss it here, so my best bet to you would be to see Wikipedia for more details.

**Romaji Guide**:

**Shin no Mori**: Forest of Death

**Kikai**: type of destructive insects used by the Aburame clan

**Hakkeshou Kaiten (Eight Trigrams Palm Rotation**, also known as **Eight Trigrams Divination Spin)**: unknown rank of defensive Hyuuga-clan taijutsu; user expels chakra from all tenketsu, with the recoil force allowing the user to spin gracefully while blocking any incoming attacks; mainly blocks attacks at angles or directed at the "equator" of the rotation (Narutopedia)

**Byakugan**: literally translates to "white eye"; allows for the user to see with near 360º vision, meaning that they can literally see everything around them, save for one blind spot, which differs from user to user. They also have the ability to see through solid objects, and can use a degree of telescopic sight to see things from a great distance (Narutopedia).

**Amegakure (no Sato)**: Hidden Rain Village

**Hyouton: Hyouketsu no Jutsu (Ice Release: Freezing Technique)**: D-rank supplementary hijutsu; user freezes water to form ice; basic supplementary technique for all **Hyouton**-class ninjutsu and hijutsu (created)

**Henge (no Jutsu)**: Transformation Technique

**Teki-nin**: enemy ninja

**Katon: Hinotama no Jutsu (Fire Release: Fireball Technique)**: C-rank offensive short-range ninjutsu; user fires a small bullet of fire in the direction of the target; dwarfed version of **Goukakyakuu no Jutsu** (created)

**Doton: Daichi Kobu no Jutsu (Earth Release: Dry Land Prominence Technique)**: Low C-rank offensive/defensive close- to mid-range ninjutsu; with the aid of earth-based chakra, the user can "move" the earth at will to simply block or strike (created)

**Kage Gen'ei**: Shadow Phantoms

**Moku Bunshin**: wood clone or wood replication

**Tama Senkou**: Spirit Flash (see Chapter Six for information regarding this hijutsu if you already forgot)

**Tama Tosshin**: Spirit Rush or Bullet Charge (see Chapter Nine for more information if you already forgot)

_Omake: Hinata's Training_

(Training Day Two)

"Okay, Hinata-san," Haku chimed in her pleasantly sweet voice. "Now that you have soaked the cloth, it is time to proceed to the next step…" The ice-using kunoichi could not add to her explanation, for a boisterous blond dashed to meet them for rudimentary Suiton training.

"Oi, Hinata-chan!" Naruto yelled as he ran up with his panting, fuzzy comrade. "You were fantastic the other day! That was awesome! Sorry I forgot to mention it earlier."

'_The way he runs…it is…in-inhuman,'_ thought the dusty-hued kit in between pants. Doshaburi wondered how Naruto managed to become such a stamina beast. The pointy-eared genin did not even look the slightest bit winded. The poor dirt-hued kit collapsed in an undignified heap. He would need a good half-hour to recuperate.

"N-Naruto-kun," the Hyuuga heiress mumbled while finding the ground particularly interesting. _'He's recognizing me…What do I say…?'_

The ice-user smiled and formed an icicle behind her back. She walked behind the blushing Hinata and rested the ice spike on the small of her back. The chilling sensation and the sharp point made Hinata stand fully erect and look into the eyes of her crush.

"A-ano…" Hinata started with a reddish tint to her cheeks. "A-Arigatou, N-Naruto-kun…"

"Listen Hinata-chan, for a job well done the other day, how about I take you to some place nice?" he asked while scratching the back of his head. It was one of his nervous ticks, just like Hinata's "poking fingers." "Well, after training for today…that is, if you don't have anything else to do…"

'_Oh Kami-sama, tell me this isn't real…Is N-Naruto-kun asking me out on a…a…a_ date_?'_ Her thoughts were running circle-marathons while she was mumbling and stuttering.

Haku decided to intervene temporarily. "Excuse us for a minute, Naruto-kun," she said with one of her patented "warm smiles." Only Kami-sama knew what she was planning behind that smirk.

She took the hand of the Hyuuga heiress and walked out of super-sensitive earshot of the blond wonder.

"Tell me, Hinata-san," Haku began, "why is it that you stutter so much?"

"I-I don't stutter…I mean…I t-typically don't stutter…unless…" She began to poke together her forefingers.

Haku decided to try a little…positive reinforcement. "Hinata-san, I'll be willing to give you an incentive to stop stuttering…or fainting around Naruto-kun. Do as I say, because the consequences will be quite severe if you break them…"

"Q-Quite…s-severe…?" asked the mumbling Hyuuga heiress.

"Yes, Hinata-san," answered the smiling, ice-using kunoichi. "If you stutter or mumble once, you'll be subjected to one of these along the nerve network of your body." She held out one of her icy senbon needles. That made Hinata's pale instantly. She could end up as a frozen porcupine when all was said and done. "And if you faint in front of me, you'll be subjected to one of my personal favorites…" The icy senbon collected more ice to form a smooth rod. "A _very_ cold awakening. Get the idea?"

"I-I don't qu-quite f-follow, H-Haku-neesan," Hinata said as she stumbled backward. Much to her discomfort, a clone of the ice-user was right behind her with an icicle prodded in her backside. The Hyuuga heiress jumped a few feet into the air and onto her sore bottom.

The elder kunoichi pointed the frigid rod down at Hinata. She smiled that innocent grin. "You will if you faint." She pointed the miniature pole lower, around Hinata's pelvic region. "Let's say that it will send chills up your spine."

Hinata looked to where the rod was pointed. The Hyuuga heiress' eyes grew to considerable proportions. She had no idea that Haku-neesan was a tortuous pervert.

"Do you understand _now_, Hinata-san?"

The poor, innocent kunoichi could only nod in agreement, with her visage still fixed in horror and disbelief…

Owari (The End)

I hope that you like this mini-short.


	12. The Snake that Bares Its Fangs

**A/N**: What's up, ladies and gentlemen? I hope that you have been dying to find out about this upcoming fight…But before I get the ball rolling, I would like to address a certain gender issue with my favorite dust-colored fox and animal familiar, Doshaburi.

He is, in fact, a male. I bet that some of you have thought that he was female with regards to the suffix "-chan" tacked onto his nickname. Unfortunately, I have referenced little Dosha-chan as a "he" for many a time. Here's a quick Japanese honorific lesson for you.

The suffix, _-chan_, is a diminutive suffix. It is an informal version of _-san_ used to address children and female family members. It may also be used towards _**animals**_, lovers, intimate friends, and people whom one has known since childhood (Wikipedia).

I think that that is all for now.

**Words from the Reviews**: I've been given much feedback, and I'm elated that a select few of you are willing to play an active role in modeling some things in my story (**the DragonBard, Dragon Man 180**, **gamedragon86**, **Milky Etoile **and **Paladeus**, this shout-out is for you). It is truly an honor to work with you all and I am highly grateful for all your insight into this fic.

Speaking of which, one of my aforementioned friends, **Paladeus**, had mentioned this to me, and I feel that I should go ahead and relay it to the rest of you that feel that Naruto is becoming "too powerful." Here are his words:

"_In your fic, each 'bloodline' doesn't give Naruto too much more of…ability than any other ninja, merely more of an exotic arsenal…"_

In short, that will be my rationalized explanation, and I'm sticking to it. I want Naruto in this fic to be a diversified, hard-working genius, and I wanted to give those chakra reserves some special use. That coupled with the fact that I don't want _my_ Naruto to be a one-trick pony with just Kage Bunshin.

Anyway, let's move on to the _main_ event, shall we?

_Saishuukai… (Last time…)_

"_You know," the blue-eyed wonder began, who was perched beside his foxy companion. "Someone that I know would like a word with you, snake-teme. But before I do…" He pulled out a snake's head and tossed it at the coiled Kusa-nin. "Apparently, your summon bit off more than he could chew. He had a bit of an indigestion problem…"_

"_Naruto, don't try to be the hero and show off!" Sasuke shouted, interrupting the dobe. "He's way out of our league! Run away!"_

_Naruto looked at his disheveled teammate and scoffed at him. "Since when have _I_ seen _you_ run away? And yes, I know he's out of our league. In fact…" He turned his gaze to the effeminate Kusa-nin. "Why don't you show us your true form…Orochimaru…?"_

_The one identified as Orochimaru hummed. "It looks like you know more than what you let on, Naruto-kun…kukuku…I'm impressed." He ripped off the face of the Grass-nin to reveal his pale face and snake-like eyes, which gave everyone goose-bumps on the back of their necks. The killer intent surged around the forest, amplifying his terrifying look. "Now that you know who I am, I cannot let you leave here…alive…"_

_**Chapter Twelve**__: The Snake that Bares Its Fangs_

"Oh, yeah?" started up the blond wonder as he brushed off the ki with crossed arms. In all seriousness, when compared to this killer intent, it paled in comparison to his tenant's brand. "Well how about you slither your way back into the hole from where you came out of!? You're ruining the exam! And there's no way that I'm dying here! I'm going to be Hokage one day, and no one's gonna stop me!"

'_He just doesn't get it…Stupid idiot! He's just making things worse by egging on one of the Sannin…I have to do something…'_ The dark-haired avenger was panicking inwardly and his face expressed it. He calmed himself down and thought for the quickest, most rational decision for the sake of the team. He did not want to lose anyone, for that would mean that he would not further his quest to seek retribution upon his elder kin.

Sakura was just as worried about the enemy as her crush, but she still speculated about that "friend" comment that Naruto made. To who…or what…was the blond enigma talking about? Was there something that he was not admitting to the rest of his team? She would have to bring that up later, but for now, they had bigger fish to fry…or in this case, a snake to make into leather.

Doshaburi felt the waves of killer intent pouring from Kyuubi-sama through Naruto-shishou to match the level of ki from the newly identified troublemaker. Even though the purple, tattoo-like markings around the Snake Sage's eyes still creeped out the little fox kit, since they made his face look more serpentine, the blanket of killer intent from Kyuubi-sama comforted him.

"You can have it!" Sasuke boomed as he deactivated his doujutsu, which stirred his teammates from their thoughts to look at him is disbelief. Since when did the ever-precious Uchiha give in? Orochimaru looked carelessly at the Uchiha boy, who was rummaging through his hip pouch for the Heaven scroll, thinking that he would have put up more of a challenge. It appeared that he may need some fine-tuning if he were to be fit to be his next body.

"You want our scroll, right? Fine, if you want the scroll, just take it and leave us alone!" Sasuke screamed. He hurled the piece of parchment as if it were an activated paper bomb toward the pale-faced creep. He _really_ wanted to flee after getting hit by that immense killer intent.

Sakura looked on with shocked eyes as the scroll was moving through the air in slow motion toward the one identified as one of the Legendary Three Ninja. How could Sasuke-kun give up so readily? Normally, he would want to test his limits to the maximum and he was throwing in the towel _now_? Where was his pride as a shinobi? Where was the pride of the Number-One Rookie?

Naruto was just as mentally irked as his pink-haired teammate. Where was that pompous, arrogant, spoiled attitude that was Sasuke's? He sighed in defeat. The snake bastard could have the scroll and they could use the spare that he had acquired through the Rain ninja. Quickly thinking on the fly as the scroll was hovering in mid-flight, Naruto ran through several handseals to create one of his experimental Hyouton hijutsu. He hoped to Kami-sama that it would work.

He was chanting in his head while performing the sequence with his hands. _'Ne, Tori, Inu, Uma, Mi, Hitsuji, Inu…Build, Perfect, Expand, Control, Focus, Expand…Hey! It worked!'_

When the tanned parchment entered Orochimaru's hands, the blond boy whispered, "**Hyouton: Hyoumu no Jutsu,**" and the surrounding air became thick with ice particles and fog around the blond and soon expanded outward to engulf the rest of Squad Seven and the defected Hebi-Sennin.

While under the cover of zero visibility, Naruto and Doshaburi dashed downward, away from striking distance of Orochimaru, as two scents of cologne and cherry shampoo filled their nostrils. Naruto scooped up Sasuke-teme while Doshaburi convinced Sakura to follow his master's trail to the upper canopy to regroup.

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(Konoha, Disbanded Root Division HQ, same time)

"Did you have any luck with finding my scout's body?" A bandaged, one-armed man asked to one of his other scouts. Danzou had a search party to locate the wayward subordinate that was supposed to recruit Uzumaki Naruto, but unfortunately, after several weeks of searching, he filed down his underling underneath the "missing in action" list.

"No, the body was nowhere to be found. Only a charred mark remained from where he stood," replied another white-masked scout who was kneeling down on one knee. "We tried tracking, but his scent was gone. I believe that he should be changed to…killed in action, Danzou-sama."

The one-eyed man in wrappings sighed in defeat. He would have to re-evaluate his strategy for recruiting Uzumaki Naruto into his ranks. From what his missing scout had told him before his disappearance, the boy was a walking gold mine of talents, with too good of abilities to be left to waste, especially under the command of his political rival, Sarutobi.

"That is all for now," Danzou murmured. _'The boy is a clever one…'_

XXXXXXXXX

(Squad Seven)

Near the top of the forest, Squad Seven paused near the willowing clouds of ice to come up with some sort of strategy against the ninja that was way out of their league. Naruto dropped Sasuke in an undignified heap on the large, thick limb.

"I can't believe that you would give up our scroll just like that, Sasuke-kun," Sakura pouted while whispering and she scowled at her…ideal. She was somewhat bummed by losing the scroll and miffed at Sasuke-kun for relinquishing the scroll to that…eerie ninja.

"Even if we didn't hand over the scroll," Sasuke explained. "He probably would've killed us and taken both scrolls for himself…single-handedly." To the onyx-eyed shinobi, it was best to pick and choose one's own battles. He certainly received his wish about testing his limits. Unfortunately, the dark image of his brother filtered into his mind, hearing those words such as "weak" and "pathetic" chanted into his psyche.

"Oh, you mean this scroll?" Naruto whipped out the spare, which caused Sasuke and Sakura to look at him wide-eyed, almost as if he were about to commit suicide. Just what the hell was that kid thinking!?

"Where the hell did you get that from?" Sakura asked in a dumbfounded manner. "Don't tell me you snatched it from that…freak..."

"Apparently, those Rain bastards had one on them, so I pilfered it while they were hanging around." He showed off his fang-toothed grin. His smirk faded a bit when he realized something. "And that reminds me…" He bopped Sasuke on the top of his noggin with a slight amount of force. The hit made his fist recoil from the Uchiha's vibrating cranium.

"Ouch! What was that for, dobe?" Sasuke hissed. Why did he have to get stricken with an unnecessary hit to the head? He thought that it was the best possible decision for the good of the team, even though it stroked his ego.

"_That_ was for acting like a _dobe_, teme," Naruto retorted. "And be grateful that I bailed us out of there, or else we would've been snake meal. Now snap out of this rut and show me the real you."

Sasuke could do nothing but glare daggers at the dobe who had just called _him_ a dobe. He had to admit to himself that Naruto's quick thinking saved their hides…at least, for the moment. But he would never tell out loud that the dobe saved his tail. Not once, not ever. His pride and distinction as a genius would take a crushing blow…that was, if it was not already smashed.

"So what do we do now?" Sakura asked, keeping her voice to a low whisper.

"I'm not sure," Naruto said as his ears twitched to pick up any slight movements. By chance, there were none, so he continued. "But this Ice Fog of mine should be good enough to keep him off our backs for the time being while we find a way to alert anyone that a criminal is here in the forest. Much to our dismay, we don't have any emergency flares…" Sakura interrupted the blond.

"How is your Ice Fog going to keep him at bay?" she asked. She was wondering how a simple technique could ward off snakes the size of the Hyuuga compound. If she had remembered her science lessons, then she would have figured it out. It was her crush that brought her up to speed…along with a slight jab at her strong point.

"And I thought you were supposed to be the one with the best analytical skills and book-smarts on the team," Sasuke retorted which earned him an annoyed look from the pinkette. _The_ Uchiha Sasuke was back all right, and in full force, too. "You _do_ know what happens to cold-blooded reptiles when they're exposed to cold temperatures, right?"

"Snake-cicles anyone?" the dust-colored fox asked rhetorically while licking his muzzle. _'Yum…they would be tasty…'_ The kit's mouth was slightly watering as he was daydreaming about crunching into frosted scales. The humans were looking at him as if he grew another tail before steeling their resolve to hash out possible battle tactics against the unpredictable Hebi-Sennin.

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Orochimaru attempted to summon forth snakes to catch his prey off-guard; however, things did not bode over so well for the Snake Wizard…

The snake-summons began to move sluggishly while some just…dropped onto the ground with absolutely little to no heartbeat in the frigid miasma. It was an interesting jutsu at that, and a new technique never seen before the eyes of Orochimaru made him mentally squeal in delight like a little kid on his birthday. He would love to gain it into his possession…by any means necessary.

'_Is this __**Kirigakure no Jutsu**__…?'_ he mentally asked himself in joy, but his smile faltered a bit._ 'No, this jutsu is much too cold for it to be that technique.'_ He looked at some of the frozen popsicles that were his summons. If Manda found out about his mistreated subordinates, then the Hebi-Sennin would immediately receive a one-way ticket to the belly of the regally arrogant beast. _'It was very clever to take into account the nature of my summons' blood. This team is full of surprises….kukuku…They might be worthy enough to die by my sword…'_ He snickered in mirth. They were an appealing bunch, indeed…

Orochimaru honed in on the three chakra signatures that were a good bit of distance northward and in the top of the canopy. To the snake-charmer, this was going to be an interesting fight between quarry and marauder.

'_I love a good chase…'_ He licked his lips in his creepy, serpentine way and slithered to engage Squad Seven. As he was ascending to the tree tops, his mandible unhinged itself as a large snake emerged from Orochimaru's maw. From the jaws of the snake came forth the infamous Kusanagi Longsword. When the hilt was visible, the Snake Wizard grabbed the long blade and spiraled up.

XXXXXXXXXX

The fog was dissipating slowly, and that time provided enough time for Team Seven to keep their newly formed calm demeanor. Their thoughts were put on hold when a humming sword swipe reverberated from behind the tree from where they were camping. The pinkette noticed a shiny metal gleam with destruction, cutting through the clearing haze, ready to decapitate her two teammates.

With bugged out eyes, Sakura shouted, "Take cover!"

Naruto, Sasuke and Doshaburi jumped in the nick of time as the tree was cleanly sliced through by the freakishly long sword. Naruto landed a bit to the southwest and glued his feet to the tree with chakra. Sasuke jumped a bit to the southeast onto a thick branch, while Doshaburi stuck onto a tree trunk a bit southward. The formation had each of them flanking their pink-haired teammate.

Orochimaru slithered onto the branch of the tree that was cut, with Kusanagi in hand. It was then that the top half started to slide off and descend to the forest floor.

He chuckled before he began to speak in his relatively calm hissing. "I am amazed that someone here knows a jutsu that could slow down my precious ones. Now who was it…?" He gave the team before him a slight grin. He was hoping that it was the last Uchiha in Konoha that pulled off that stunt. He would _love_ to possess that body on his quest for immortality.

Much to his dismay, Squad Seven remained silent, only for their reserved looks to speak for them. _'It appears that they would want to keep their secrets to the grave…kukuku…Foolish integrity…'_

"Very well. It is evident to me that I will have to force it out of you, then…**Sen'ei Jashu**!"

The snake-charmer held up his two hands and, from each sleeve, two small serpents emerged and lashed out to the entire team. Sakura jumped down to the lower branch to avoid being bitten and crushed. Sasuke back-flipped and Naruto had jumped into the air to avoid the fangs while Doshaburi ran up the trunk to safety.

Whilst in mid-air, the blond wonder flashed through several handseals and landed on the Tatsu seal.

He stretched out his hands and cried out, "**Fuuton: Daitoppa**!" The ever-popular wind-tunnel blew onto Orochimaru, but he was unmoved and standing firm. Sasuke knew what was happening; that was not the real snake bastard.

The figure before them started to "melt" and the skin turned from pallid-white to a mud-colored hue…to a pile of sludge.

'_What the hell!?'_ thought the blue-eyed jinchuuriki as he was soaring above the canopy. _'Damn it…That was a Tsuchi Bunshin. Where's the real snake-bastard?'_

"Right behind you, Naruto-kun…kukuku…"

Naruto's head whipped around to the left, only to get backhanded by the Snake Sage, who had his body stretched and contorted to reach the blond's altitude. The resulting strike sent Naruto crashing through numerous trees before imprinting himself onto one several hundred meters from the strike point. Naruto's head was spinning in orbits as he tried to gather his bearings.

"Naruto!" Sasuke and Sakura yelled simultaneously, while the little cloudburst was crying out to his master.

'_No…I can't sit by while Shishou gets hurt…'_ The killer intent emanating from the little fox cub was close to unimaginable. To Sakura, it felt like a weaker version that she had come across when they were on the mission in Wave Country.

'_What is this terrible chakra? It feels like it can be tasted in the air…'_ The pinkette looked up to see Dosha-chan with a feral look and…carmine irises. How can the little kit produce such an incredible amount of ki? It had felt nothing like when they were sparring with Kakashi-sensei before the commencement of the Chuunin Trials.

The puzzle was kind of sliding into place for the pink-haired wiz-kid, but she could not wrap around the idea that Dosha-chan and Naruto must have some form of connection to that supposed "kekkei genkai" he had mentioned…But what was it? _'Naruto…just who are you? What are you…?'_

Orochimaru felt the presence surging through the little fox cub, and it astounded him to absolute disbelief. _'How can that little fox cub produce the familiar signature of the Kyuubi?'_ He was even more stunned when the kit vanished and appeared behind him, giving off a ghoulish face that made even the Snake Sage halt in his tracks.

"**Kiki Gyoushi**...success! **Tama Tosshin**!" The dust-colored fox charged into Orochimaru's chest, sending him through a couple of trees due to the force of the recoil. The Hebi-Sennin's blade penetrated into the wood above him. The impact caused Doshaburi to back-flip onto the branch where the snake-face used to stand. With youki flaring, Doshaburi dashed over to where his master landed, which had been a good one thousand feet away.

Shaking herself from all the killer intent in the forest, she looked over to Sasuke, who was just standing on the branch, slightly suffocating from the clash of ki. He was half-broken from his thoughts when he heard his pink-haired teammate.

"Sasuke-kun, we have to help…now," she stated while running through her complex string of handseals. She held out a seal that looked like a triangle and focused on Orochimaru's outlaid body on the tree and cried out, "**Magen: Tsuta Wana no Jutsu**!"

Ivy vines evanescently appeared from around the tree to ensnare the creepy Densetsu no Nin. The snake-charmer tried to dispel the illusion, but it proved futile. He was exceedingly impressed by the Haruno's illusionary techniques and the fixed grin proved it. The myriad of talent surrounding him now piqued his curiosity. It appeared that Kabuto did not gather a lot of accurate information regarding the members of Squad Seven. He had thought that Sasuke-kun was the only team member of admirable merit.

'_Note to self…_scold_ Kabuto for his misinformation…'_ He smiled at that thought.

His Kusanagi shined in a blue hue, dislodged itself from the bark and contorted like a snake to cut through the vines, which broke the genjutsu. He pulled out of the tree imprint and flew to Sakura, who was going through a new set of handseals. The pink-haired girl disappeared into a flurry of pink petals, only to leave the Snake Sage surrounded by a violent blizzard of sakura petals and complementary trees in a grove of pinkish hues. _'I would have preferred red instead…kukuku…'_ The Hebi-Sennin thought. He was _highly_ intrigued for the moment.

'_Right into my trap…'_ she mentally declared. "**Magen: Sakura Mugen Kajuen**! This genjutsu distorts the five senses all together," her voice rang out from all directions within the petal snowstorm. "You may think that you may be striking me, but I may just be only a figment of your imagination." The pinkette materialized from nowhere and ran at the snake-charmer with a kunai in hand. Effortlessly, Orochimaru sliced through Sakura…only for her to disappear into a flurry of petals blown into the imaginary wind. It was only an illusion, but how could it be an illusion with a chakra signature? More copies of the pink-haired girl appeared and launched themselves at him.

While Orochimaru was preoccupied with trying to solve the puzzle that was her genjutsu, the real Sakura was nowhere inside the illusionary grove. She was on the outside unwrapping the bandage on her left wrist. The undone dressing revealed a black ring of kanji banded around her wrist like a watch. Tattooed below her palm was a seal engraving with the image of a shuriken on it. Sakura raised her right thumb to her mouth and bit down on it. She had then proceeded to make eight lines around the ring below her palm. Immediately afterward, eight miniature, red shuriken appeared in a small puff of smoke and landed in her left palm. They looked highly reminiscent of four-sided rose petals more so than shuriken, but they were still edge-sharp.

She did not want to resort to this, but she had to reveal a few more of her jutsu to delay for time while Naruto was shaking off the one-way trip through the trees with the help of his dirt-hued buddy. And as for Sasuke…

He was looking on in slight awe, amazed that _Sakura_ managed to stall for time…against one of the _Sannin_. His respect for her jumped a bit and thought that she was kind of cute for possessing strength like that…but he brushed off that thought. He could not get close to anyone, for he had to first fulfill his ambition. He had to kill his brother and bring him to justice. He wanted to worry about reviving the clan later. _'Now, if only she would cut her hair…'_ Sasuke was having his own mental struggle for the moment, and it was his preoccupation that made him somewhat unable to do anything. It appeared that Haku was neither in his mind nor was she in the recesses of it.

XXXXXXXXXX

Naruto was just shaking off the impact of the fall and soared through the trees to his teammates along with his little fox kit at a breakneck speed. The crimson irises and feral look made him all the more intimidating…along with his claws, which were encased in extended, transparent wind-knives behind him. He was ready to tear a new hide into the snake-teme when he got a hold of him.

'**Let me take hold for a while, kit,'** Kyuubi remarked. **'I've been dying to rip that bastard a new one.'**

'_How about we do this together?'_ Naruto asked. _'I want a piece of him, too. But, no hostile takeover, and what I say goes. Deal?'_ He just pushed off another branch, leaving some upturned bark. His little cloudburst made similar imprints with his claws.

The ninth tailed-beast snorted. **'Hn…All right, boy, but I get first strike. I'm ready to take vengeance against that pathetic excuse of a human,'** Kyuubi calmly stated. He had then thought of something else. His metaphorical thinking cap was now on at full power. **'And I believe I know the reason for why he is after us, most specifically, the Uchiha-teme…'**

'…_Enlighten me, Kyuubi-sama…'_ Naruto really wanted to know why a Kage-level ninja would want to interrupt the exams, all for the sake of his onyx-haired comrade-at-arms. Kyuubi journeyed into the realm of his nostalgic memory.

'**When I was pulled from my realm, I had heard him mention his goals in passing. There were two of them: 1) to seek immortality like the bijuu; and 2) master every jutsu in the known world. Pretty foolhardy ambitions if you ask me.'**

Naruto worked around with the cryptic clues that his tenant had given him. Ambitions…every jutsu…Sasuke-teme…Immortality like the bijuu…

That boiled it down to one logical explanation: The snake bastard wanted the teme because he possessed one of the three great doujutsu—an eye technique that could copy…_most_ ninjutsu or genjutsu. That did not make too much sense in the factoring premises, but if there had been some form of jutsu that could take over a body…

It finally clicked in the elf-eared genin's brain. The clever leather belt discovered a technique that could transfer into, and, quite possibly, possess a person's body. The damn pedophile wanted _Sasuke's_ body…

The youki in his body flared significantly as the wind-knives in his hands fused into two longer wind-hooks. There was no way in Yomi that _that_ slithery fiend of a ninja would get his slimy paws on his friend and teammate. _That_ much was certain.

Oh, the snake bastard was going to get what was coming to him…And not even Kami-sama would stop the beast of nature that was Uzumaki Naruto. He picked up the pace, along with his dust-colored kit. From the naked eye, a viewer would think that he or she had been seeing two crimson blurs in the canopy.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, parts unknown, nightfall of Day Two)

"The forest isn't supposed to be this cold during this time of year," Yuugao remarked as she was traveling with her tiger-masked partner, who had been silent for the moment. All of a sudden, she felt a huge spike in evil chakra that masked the other evil presence that they had previously felt. It was not just any evil chakra, but the life-force was all too familiar to Leaf-nin and civilian alike. It made even Uzuki Yuugao sweat on her neck in slight fear.

"You felt it, too, didn't you?" Tenzou asked as he turned around. "There's no question about it…That was the chakra of the Kyuubi. We need to hurry, because I feel that Orochimaru found them, before we did."

The purple-haired kunoichi took out her sword to test its sharpness. She wanted to make sure to turn the vile traitor into a pile of guts when the opportunity would arise. She gave her sword the green light after slicing minimally into a tree as she was passing by with little to no effort. Content with the results, she nodded, sheathed her sword and they picked up the pace.

XXXXXXXXXX

After a few complicated handseals, Sakura let fly her eight petal-like shuriken into the dome of illusion. Inside the distorted grove-dome, the shuriken multiplied and blended into the scenery while the grove had taken on a small reddish tint.

Orochimaru got his wish…but not in the kindhearted sense, for he felt slashes and cuts as the storm of flowers intensified. The cuts were just annoying since he had regenerative powers and did not fear of any blood loss.

Swallowing his longsword as if he were a professional blade-eater, the Hebi-Sennin calmly lifted up his left shirt sleeve to his snake-summoning tattoo and smeared blood onto it from his cut-open finger.

XXXXXXXXXX

"**Magen: Baraben Boufuu**…" Sakura whispered while holding onto the shuriken with several chakra strings, directing them any which way Sakura wanted them to go. Much to her dismay, she could already feel her chakra reserves going considerably low while she was panting. Her teammates really needed to get their act together, or she was going to be in trouble if her reserves hit rock-bottom.

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu**!" a muffled voice yelled inside the grove-dome. Sakura's jutsu was cancelled as she was flown back from the gusts of the snake-summoning and slammed hard into a tree. Her chakra was nearly gone and she could only watch in helplessness as the giant snake was about to snap her in half…

XXXXXXXXXX

'_Dammit…I need to do something to save her! Sasuke, focus! Get your ass in gear and __move__!'_ Sasuke yelled in his mind after seeing what was about to happen. The lone Uchiha was wedged between a rock and a hard place in his decision. His resolution was definite; he did not want to lose anyone else. Not ever again. He forced away his payback and brother's mentally corrupt diatribe only to focus on saving the pinkette, because she was a necessity to the team in order to pass. It was not because he had taken a liking to her or anything, but his conscience was telling him otherwise…and if only she had short hair…He shook off that thought and focused at the matter at hand.

His doujutsu activated, but this time, he had a pair of tomoe in both eyes. He could now see much more clearly as he flashed through more handseals than ever before. Time seemed to slow to a grinding halt as he slapped together his Tora handseal and breathed deeply with his cheeks blown up all the way.

'_Naruto, Kakashi…Thank you…'_ Sasuke thought as he reared back and fired…

XXXXXXXXXX

"_**Katon: Jouka no Jutsu**__!!"_

From the canopy, an ethereal-blue, phoenix-shaped flame descended in a downward nose-dive, spiraling toward the snake-charmer and his summon. The phoenix-like image had white eyes of purity and righteousness as it descended with "wings" outspread, screeching. Orochimaru disregarded his summon and jumped to save his own hide. The poor snake-summon never stood a chance. It would appear that dinner was on Orochimaru this time as it scorched the now-charred carapace into oblivion.

'_I see. So his Uchiha blood finally came to a boil…What's this…?'_ He was somewhat…startled by Sasuke-kun's new attitude etched onto his face as he landed in between Sakura-san and him. It was a different reaction than what Orochimaru had wanted him to portray. He could tell in his eyes the steeled resolve of devotion to his comrades. It would appear that he would have to soften that tenacity to bend Sasuke-kun to his will. He desired his…eye candy, for lack of a better term.

"Leave her alone," he said calmly, but the words said carried an undercurrent of hatred. "Let us be…" He paused to register the huge chakra capacities fast-approaching to their location, albeit they were a good distance away. He knew one of them was the dobe, but it felt…different than his usual signature. He continued. "Or face the consequences…" His tomoe were rapidly spinning in anticipation while Orochimaru had close to an orgasm in his pants. He _really_ wanted those eyes now…

"You…threaten me? I am deeply touched by your words, Sasuke-kun," Orochimaru hissed. He had then decided to begin a game that he knew all too well how to play: psychological warfare. "Why play 'step-in' now, knowing that even the pink-haired girl did something before you did? If you cannot best me, then clearly you will be no match for your bro—" The onyx-haired avenger immediately interrupted the Snake Wizard.

"I don't give a damn about my brother, because I have another! To hell with Itachi!" The comment elicited a slightly wide-eyed look from the Snake Sage as Sasuke fumed on with boiling fervor. "That murderous traitor can burn in Hell for all I care! When I see him, I'll murder him in cold blood just like he did to _my_ clan!" he roared with narrowed eyes and spinning tomoe, which was unprecedented in the known history for an Uchiha to lose his cool. "Besides," he glanced over his shoulder at his pink-haired teammate. "I thought that the little lady should have a shot before I did."

The dark-haired avenger continued. "And even though my other teammate may be a dobe, Naruto was more of a brother than _he_ will ever be!"

Sakura, who was half-conscious, looked at her potential love interest with adoration and wide eyes. His emotional shell was becoming undone. She would have to thank her blond-haired teammate for getting through to him.

Adding to that, she found out who it was that he wanted to kill. She heard through the grapevine about the Uchiha massacre, and she never would have thought that his own biological brother would slaughter all but one of his clansmen. Nonetheless, she vowed to give thanks to her knight in the blue high-collared shirt and help in any way of obtaining his revenge. But for now, she was too exhausted to speak.

'_Sasuke-kun…Thank you…for saving me. Naruto…thank you for showing him the light…'_ she thought as she decided to rest, letting her Sasuke-kun take away the situation until Naruto showed up. Her Inner-Self would look out for her a while she was regaining her chakra.

Orochimaru was surprised as well. Sasuke-kun was a tougher nut to crack than what he expected. "So I take it that you want to gain more power to best _him_, am I right?" He asked in a sing-song tone. He thought that if he offered something to the Uchiha's taste, then it would have him come running like a child to sweets. "I can give you power, even more so than this rat-hole of a village. You will be on the fast track to vengeance against your clan were you to do so…"

That lingering feeling of helplessness was slowly creeping up in the mind of the dark-haired Uchiha. The temptation of power and his brother's berating was about to get the best of him…but he shoved down that thought. He would not need any augmentation to best his brother. He could get stronger on his own. The Sacred Fire Technique was what had showed for it when he opened up to suggestions from his comrades, especially the former class clown of the Rookie Nine that capitalized on details more so than Kakashi, who just told him to use his doujutsu to copy the technique altogether. He even further implemented on how to channel lightning faster through a heated medium…and once again, that was all thanks to the dobe…er, to Naruto…for helping him create more of his own personal arsenal of attacks without the dependence of his clan's eye technique. There would be no way for him to outwardly thank the do—Naruto—in words for all that he had done for him. He would repay the blond wonder with a nice spar when this part was all over. Regardless, the Uchiha kid shot down the offer with vehemence.

"Why would I want power from you, knowing that you're more than likely weaker than him?" he asked composedly. "Is it because that _he_ proved too strong for you, only for you to come target me next? Then forget it. I decline. I can get stronger on my own." That stung the Snake Sage's pride and ended his mental game, and the wild blast of ki proved that fact. He was not going to be condescended…by a kid, no less.

Sasuke, however, adjusted to the spiked level of ki and dropped into his Uchiha taijutsu stance and took a page from the dobe's…er, Naruto's book. "C'mon, _snake-teme_…Dance with me…" Sasuke made a motioning hand.

Orochimaru's grin had faltered a bit but was replaced by a smile for the challenge. "I thought that you would never ask…" In a flash, he was gone and tried to level Sasuke with a punch, but the dark-haired avenger had seen it coming and dodged to the right and grabbed the extended fist. He turned around and gave the snake-face an _uki goshi_ throw to another branch.

The Hebi-Sennin stretched out from the branch to engage Sasuke-kun into hand-to-hand combat while his lower half finally crept over to meet up with his upper half.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Ten minutes later…)

Ducking, dodging and attempting to land blows, their skills in taijutsu were evenly deadlocked. Luckily, Sasuke had a doujutsu that gave him a slight advantage over the faster ninja…and he found an opening.

The raven-haired avenger dodged a punch and slid under Orochimaru's guard with a sweep kick, knocking the Snake Sage off-balance. Since his center of gravity was off, Sasuke launched his other leg to meet the chin of the teki-nin, which made the snake-charmer soar into the air.

Sasuke got on all fours and leapt up at close to hypersonic speed and appeared underneath Orochimaru.

The snake-charmer hummed in disinterest and looked over his shoulder at the smirking Uchiha beneath him. "**Kage Buyou**…?"

"Yeah, but after this, this is my own style…" Sasuke declared. "I know that you're earth-natured, so this is going to hurt like hell for you…" He kicked up his left leg to bump Orochimaru higher into the air, followed by his right leg. The two were soaring high above the canopy with the barrage of soaring kicks.

Sasuke took notice of the air currents, humidity and warmth in the air, along with the cloud cover, just like Naruto pointed out to him. He felt that it was an appropriate height to let down the snake-face in a "gentle" fashion…

He swung his left leg and planted it into the torso of the snake-teme. But that did not stop there…

The dark-haired avenger landed a full salvo of erratic, rotating spin-kicks and elbow bashes from above, sending Orochimaru faster to the quickly-approaching earth while he was coughing up a bit of blood.

Prepping for his last blow, Sasuke had been focusing on creating a positive charge in his fists to draw out the negative charge in the clouds…and it worked.

Natural lightning was channeled into a long, crackling chain and enveloped his chakra-loaded fists, which were shaped like jaws to a dragon's head, and struck home into the face of the falling Hebi-Sennin with a huge hammer blow.

"_**Hirairyuu Rendan**_!"

The resulting power from the lightning-covered pounding strike and the collision into the understory created a devastating shockwave that was felt within a kilometer or two from ground zero, along with a miniature mushroom cloud. The trees near the impact site bent back by the sudden change in atmospheric pressure and the colossal blast.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, location unknown)

The two ANBU operatives felt the small rumble from the understory as they were rocketing through trees to stop Orochimaru. They hoped that whoever had run into him was keeping him grounded for the moment as they moved closer to the source of the small earthquake.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Squad Ten)

Team Ten were on their way to the tower until they saw two small dots in the air falling toward the ground.

"What's going on up there?" Ino asked as she used her hand as a visor with squint eyes.

"I don't know. What do you think, Shikamaru?" Chouji asked as he stopped snacking for a brief minute.

"Why ask me? Trying to figure out the unknown is so…"

He was about to say "troublesome," but chain lightning and the thunderous roar of the titanic shockwave drowned out his voice. Said tremor knocked Team Ten flat on their bottoms.

"Now what the _hell_ was that!?" Ino screeched, scared out of her wits. She never really liked lightning…nor did she like thunderstorms in general.

"I don't know," Chouji asked, blissfully unaware while snacking on his potato chips. "What do you think, Shikamaru?"

'_Déjà vu…So troublesome…'_ The lazy genius sighed. "It was probably a ninjutsu and the two dots must have been two combatants fighting in the air."

The portly shinobi and the materialistic kunoichi looked at each other and then back at the pineapple-haired shougi player. "_OOooh…_" They spoke in unison while Shikamaru palmed his face.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sasuke was exhausted, kneeling down on one knee and panting. That last jutsu took a lot out of him. He had then taken note that the Dancing Leaf Shadow had to have **Kaimon** open in order to undo the inhibitors on the body. He would have to put a mental disclaimer on that for the time being and thank Lee for the inspiration later.

Sakura stirred from her rest after the explosive crater was made into the understory of the forest. Her chakra reserves were about one-quarter filled as she stood up to notice the bent trees around several concentric circles. Sasuke-kun was in the middle, but the creepy ninja was nowhere to be found.

'_Did Sasuke-kun create that crater…?'_ she mentally asked her self, which was answered by her Inner Will.

'_**As a matter of fact, that was Sasuke-kun's Hirairyuu Rendan…a more improved capitalization jutsu after he used the Kage Buyou…'**_ Inner-Sakura continued to give her the play-by-play recap of what had happened. It was fortunate for Sakura that her Inner-Self tapped into her consciousness to keep abreast of what was going on while she was taking a cat-nap.

'_Wait, wasn't that part of Lee-kun's taijutsu repertoire?'_ Her Inner Persona shook her head and continued to enlighten Pinky.

XXXXXXXXXX

The tenant/host combination looked on at the destruction site with his claws at the ready. With a careful eye, he noticed a small lump appear from behind the earth without breaking it…and the lump, which was now a body, was going after his dark-haired teammate.

"**Look after Sakura, Dosha-chan**," he whispered in a deep, beastlike tone. "**I'll take it from here**." With a slight nod from the vulpine companion, he hopped over eastward to the relaxing scent of cherry shampoo. He would want his master to get him that brand whenever he got the chance to bug him.

XXXXXXXXXX

The onyx-haired Uchiha paused and felt a presence behind him within striking distance, but he was too exhausted to move the slightest bit. He could only just kneel there, with his Sharingan active, trying to catch his breath and look behind him, only to see Orochimaru bare his elongated fangs. He knew that it would be the end…

…Until a crimson streak came from out of the blue to save his fellow soldier…

XXXXXXXXXX

"**Fuuton: Fuujin no Tsume**!"Naruto shouted at the top of his guttural voice. The transparent wind-hook sliced through the right elbow of the snake-charmer, causing him to reel back in pain and cease from making his mark on the Uchiha. The blond wheeled around and lashed out with his other wind-claw, tearing more off the arm, leaving only a bloodied stump and blood spewing about the place.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sasuke looked at the chakra flow into his teammate's arm. He vowed to himself that he would not copy any of the dobe's ninjutsu, but it was too good an offer to pass up. He wanted to find a way for both Sakura and himself to channel chakra like that into their limbs to create a weapon of sorts for each of them. That would not be copying…more so along the lines of…creative ingenuity, as the dobe…er, Naruto would put it. He would have to get over calling him that, but that nickname stuck like glue.

He also took note of the unrelenting appearance of the blond wonder. He was basking in a reddish essence and his eye color turned from ocean-blue sapphire to blood-red crimson, just like the same color as his Sharingan. The killer intent radiating from the former blond idiot was volumes thicker than the snake-faced bastard's ki. What was worse was that Naruto did not seem the least bit affected by having blood on his claws. The Uchiha mentally kicked himself for not bringing the reading material on mythological lore.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sakura was feeling the amalgam of affliction and rage pouring forth from her blond enigma of a teammate as she was stroking Doshaburi's coat. Now she was curious to find out what the blond was hiding, and it probably had to do with his features and Dosha-chan…

XXXXXXXXXX

Naruto looked on at the snake-faced ninja and growled in an animalistic manner, with crimson eyes ablaze and fangs exposed. The fury came together as blended killer intent never felt by anyone for almost thirteen years; more from the fox for killing his family and brethren, and a lesser rage from the blond for smacking him silly and trying to take off with his potential container, ally and friend. In short, his face and ki spoke more volumes than an encyclopedia set.

Orochimaru had never felt the emotion of fear in his life, but when he felt the suffocating killing intention and the blood-red irises from Naruto-kun, he was close to urinating in his pants. Never before had he felt such a compound presence. It seemed that Kyuubi was a bit…perturbed that he slaughtered his kin while Naruto-kun must have figured out why he was there…to take away his comrade and friend.

"No need to be hasty…" The Hebi-Sennin coolly remarked as he attempted to calm himself as well. _'The two have merged…'_

"**Like hell!**" Naruto/Kyuubi shouted. The dual-persona let out a ki-filled roar that had anyone within the vicinity turn tail and run, most particularly, some of the elder Konoha genin. However, not all the teams wanted to leave; some were, in fact, curious as to what was going on…

XXXXXXXXXX

(Back with Team Ten)

The platinum-blonde kunoichi was now trembling when she heard that bestial bellow coming from a few meters northward. Chouji stopped munching and lost his appetite, which was then replaced by a fit of nausea. Shikamaru felt a bit of the familiar chakra signature, but it was blended with that horrendous killer intent that had him breaking into a cold sweat.

"I think we should check it out. C'mon guys," Shikamaru bravely said, but Ino thought otherwise. Run away and flee for the hills.

"_There is no way that I'm going to investigate that!_" she screamed. She would be the last one to go to a location with that kind of dread looming around them. That was also the area where the lightning struck.

"Naruto could be in trouble," Shikamaru gravely added.

Ino paused in her ranting. She had then remembered his physical changes, and then she felt Naruto's chakra signature…only somewhat. "What if that _is_ Naruto?" she pondered while holding up a finger to her chin. It was a stretch, and anything was possible, especially from the unpredictable prankster.

Chouji and Shikamaru looked at her with slightly wide eyes. Why did they _not_ think about that? The shougi player mentally kicked himself for leaving out that scope of logic into his calculations. They decided to dash to the thickest source of energy, only to stumble upon the most unbelievable scene from the high canopy. Squad Seven was going toe-to-toe…with one of the Legendary Three…and that Legendary Ninja had…a botched amputation.

What stunned them to oblivion was that the blood was stained on…_Naruto_, who had what appeared to be some sort of ethereal wind blade encased around his hands. He chopped off one of the Legendary Ninja's arms? That was far gone from impossible. To boot, the fiery energy was, indeed, coming from the blond enigma. Now _that_ sparked their curiosity.

XXXXXXXXXX

Naruto/Kyuubi was going to make that bastard pay for his transgressions on the mortal world. They guaranteed that another limb was coming off…today. The pair felt a cooling sensation as the blades on his claws began to frost over. Mist was subliming from the semi-solid hooks.

The man-beast fusion charged dead-ahead at the calmed Snake-Sennin. "**Hyouton**…" Orochimaru's eyes slightly widened. "**Yuki-Onna no Tsume**!"

It was _Naruto-kun_ that was using the secret art of the ice-type "element," and not his precious, future container. The boy had changed, and the inaccurate data regarding Squad Seven had the Snake Sage walk well into the unknown. He vowed to make Kabuto…_suffer_ for not giving him sufficient evidence.

"Now, now…temper, temper," remarked the snake-charmer as a colony of snakes came out of his left sleeve and wrapped around the blond enigma.

"**You're going to have another limb gone by the time I'm done with you****!**" the human-demon roared while trying to pry off the snakes. What made it more disgusting was when the snake-teme's tongue stretched and wrapped around the surprised jinchuuriki's shoulders, which made the claw jutsu cancel due to lack of focus.

"I am afraid that will no longer be possible…" He paused and whispered so only Naruto could hear. "Kyuubi brat…"

Suddenly, the snake-charmer's mouth unhinged, revealing the face of the real Orochimaru, who emerged from his…"shed" skin with both arms intact. His tongue was still gripping onto Naruto/Kyuubi, even though it slightly burned his tongue. Who knew that the king of bijuu would taste so spicy?

The Snake Sage's regenerated right hand started to sprout purple flames hovering at the top of each digit, and each digit had a particular glowing kanji for the words "earth," "metal," "fire," "water" and "wood" within the wraithlike embers. The elongated tongue lifted up the boy's jacket and undershirt to reveal the Hakke Shiki Fuuin in plain sight. "You have been a nuisance and it's time that I put an end to your charade…**Gogyou Fuuin**!"

The Hebi-Sennin cocked back his hand and was about to ram his fingers into the seal on Naruto's stomach, but his hand was caught…by wood…and some of his snakes were sliced off by a quick katana swipe, which allowed Naruto to pry loose from the gross tongue.

"It seems like we made it in the nick of time," said the tiger-masked figure with a block of wood coming from underneath him. He looked over from the scene to the criminal and spoke to him in a deadpanned expression. "Orochimaru, you're under arrest."

"Move once and your head comes off," retorted another masked ANBU with purple hair, who had her katana unsheathed and resting on the Adam's apple of the creepy snake-man.

Orochimaru knew for a fact that the Shodai must have not had any descendants, so that narrowed it down to one choice. "Well, well…It seems like one of my sixty guinea-pigs survived my experiment. I never would have imagined. Maybe I ought to do a follow-up on my experiment…"

That off-sided comment grabbed the attention of Teams Seven and Ten. The guy in the tiger mask was one of Orochimaru's…_experiments_? And he possessed the Shodai Hokage's power…wood-element ninjutsu. Naruto, on the other hand, was getting ideas popping into his head. He could learn from the operative in the tiger mask on how to use the wood-element combination.

Tenzou narrowed his eyes behind the mask. He flashed through a few handseals to bring forth roots to clamp the snake bastard's mouth shut, not wanting Orochimaru to disclose even more S-class secrets. All the while Naruto was looking on with his ki receding slightly. He was calming down and getting ideas from how he was constructing the sequence. Naruto moved out of harm's way from the snake-teme and thought up of something regarding his precluded Mokuton ability. Sure he would know that it was forbidden to use it now, but he wanted to test it out. He knew that the Mi handseal combined the two sets of water and earth-chakra to complete the sequence, but where to go from there…

He fumbled through a set of his own, hoping that it would work and not come back and hit him in his fanny…but it did. The slab of wood tapped the poor blond against his buttocks, out of eyesight of those around him. He wanted to move the block of wood outward, not upward, instead of potentially creating a self-induced stool softener.

Mentally scratching that theoretical sequence, he thought up of another theory. _'Okay…how about this? Saru…Oushi…Inu…Mi…Bend…Move…Expand…Balance…'_ The results were unexpected as he felt the chakra convert to a different kind of energy and channeled through the earth…and shot forward…

XXXXXXXXXX

As the two ANBU operatives were interrogating their suspect, a giant block of wood came from their right and socked the Hebi-Sennin in the cheek, causing of few of his fang-like teeth to be dislodged from place.

Tenzou looked at Yuugao, who looked back at him. She was confused as hell as to how her wood-using partner did that without handseals.

"Did you do that?" the purple-haired kunoichi asked. She thought that it would be unnecessary to resort to violence if the captured refused to talk. However, Orochimaru was in no position to speak, for his mouth was forcibly shut by her partner's wood.

"No. Did you see me make hand seals?" Tenzou countered with his hands clasped together, which made it look like he had a handseal ready. It was then that they turned focus from the criminal and traced the wooden chute to the blond in the dissipating red aura. The origin of the slab of wood came from Naruto's feet. Said blond had a cheeky grin of innocence while having his hands pressed together in the Mi handseal.

"Uh," Naruto started. "Did _I_ do that?"

XXXXXXXXXX

"No way!" Ino shouted. "Did you _see_ that!?" To say that she was surprised was an understatement.

"Yeah, I can't believe it either," Chouji answered while munching again. His appetite returned with much zest.

"I never would've thought that _Naruto_ of all people, much like that ANBU guy, could use Mokuton. But how? That was the power of the Shodai Hokage…He was the only one that could use it…" It was then that Shikamaru identified the blond wonder's third chakra affinity—water. It made perfect sense; it was only possible if his friend knew of the fluid flexibility of water with the rigid durability of earth to help make a type of life-producing wood. He also knew some type of ice-element as well, since he had seen Naruto with the change in his bladed hands. He would have to question Naruto alone whenever he got the chance. The shougi player's teammates were thinking along the same idea. The boy had a _lot_ of explaining to do if they would make it to the tower.

XXXXXXXXXX

'_Naruto, you baka…You were supposed to keep that a secret!'_ Sakura was screaming in her mind while palming her face. The cat was out of the bag now. The pinkette was going to go down there and show the dunderhead a piece of her mind…as well as her Inner-Sakura.

'_**Great…now we're fucked…Orochi-teme is going to go bonkers after seeing that. Good going with letting the cat out of the bag, dumb-ass…Shannaro!'**_ Inner Sakura pointed her fist to Naruto within Sakura's mindscape. Her respect for the boy still remained, nonetheless, but it was hanging on by a mere thread.

XXXXXXXXXX

'_Naruto-shishou…'_ Doshaburi thought as his ki receded. The loss of the youki made the poor kit fatigued beyond measure and passed out on the tree branch.

XXXXXXXXXX

'_Sigh…You had to experiment again, didn't you dobe?'_ Sasuke rhetorically asked within his head as he stood up. It was certain; the nickname would stick for now, unless he proved otherwise.

XXXXXXXXXX

Orochimaru was salivating at the mouth and the fluid was dripping down the wood covering his maw. There was no way that Naruto-kun was one of his test subjects, so how it was that he could use Mokuton? Nations abroad would war over gaining their hands on abilities like the Mokuton, those of which were special blends of dual-element chakra. He knew that he had a feeling that he struck gold with this team. He wanted to stake a claim in those abilities for himself. Now that everyone's guard was down, it was time to make his getaway…

But before he left…

XXXXXXXXXX

Orochimaru melted into the ground again, eluding the range of the two ANBU operatives and appeared within striking distance of Squad Seven. Thrown for a loop, Team Seven, along with the two ANBU, could only watch on in shock as three black-colored snakes came from his left sleeve and clamped down on each of their napes. The three serpents injected a special ink into the left sides of Team Seven's necks. From the injection point, a tattoo of three tomoe materialized onto their skin as the three cringed in pain. Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura took a knee from the excruciating burning sensation spreading out through their bodies.

The Hebi-Sennin wanted to test their strength of will to see if they could survive his **Ten no Juin**. One, two, or even all three of them were bound to seek him for power sooner or later, and that much was guaranteed by the Hebi-Sennin. They would yearn more for power and would seek out his guidance so he could potentially take over one of the strong and able bodies. Much to the Snake Sage's dismay, he could not make a…_clean_ getaway, without a reminder of his inaccurate information.

XXXXXXXXXX

Before Naruto was down for the count, the Snow-Woman Claw activated in one of his hands as he turned to chop off Orochimaru's right arm…again. This time, however, was different. Frostbite immediately settled in, claiming some of the nerves. The ice-claw dissipated and Naruto fell, face forward onto the ground, sweating profusely from the intense agony. It felt as if his insides were on fire.

XXXXXXXXXX

Before Sasuke succumbed to the unconscious realm, he shouted out, "**Raiton: Shinkei Douyou no Jutsu**!" and an electrostatic charge traveled through the serpent and stunned the snake bastard, jolting the nerve endings of the frostbitten right arm. The cold temperature acted as a superconductor, which amplified the never ending damage. Now the snake-face's limb would _never_ grow back, no matter how hard he tried to use his regeneration abilities. Sasuke smiled as the last bit of energy left him and collapsed on his side. Soon after, his body started to convulse like a paper bomb exploded with him.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sakura gave the final, metaphorical "slap" in the face to the creepy snake-charmer before she went under. On her knees from the excruciating pain, she turned her body and spread out her palm to the region of Orochimaru's face.

She whispered while struggling to speak, "**Youjutsu: Kasumime no Jutsu**," and a dark shadow crept out of her outspread hand. The jutsu made its mark, which worsened the snake-creep's vision. Much to her dismay, she only had the energy for it to work for only for about two weeks. In essence, her technique was only temporary, unlike the damage that her teammates had wrought upon him. That was _some_ number done to the snake bastard's arm.

Her eyes fluttered closed as she fell on her back, unconscious, while Orochimaru submerged under the earth, rubbing his eyes, all the while evading the wooden roots and katana swipes from Tenzou and Yuugao respectively. Those brats were going to pay for what they had done to him…especially the pinkette and little Naruto-kun.

It was only the beginning for Squad Seven. With their bodies exposed and minds in unrest, the battles for the possession of self and soul were under way.

XXXXXXXXXX

"What did that creep do to Forehead Girl!?" Ino shouted. "What the hell did he do the entire team!? He just knocked them out cold with a cheap shot!"

'_Although…'_ she mentally added. _'I never knew that Forehead knew _any_ jutsu, much less a dark art…'_ In fact, she was more so astonished by her rival's technique than Naruto's wooden sucker-punch. Either way, Forehead's squad had changed after their first C-turned-A-rank mission. She was impressed, but she would never admit it outright that Forehead was getting stronger.

"You know that there aren't any cheap shots in the world of shinobi," the portly boy reasoned. He was impressed by the other team's enthusiasm and final shots before they had fallen.

"Either way, it's going to be troublesome," Shikamaru drawled with his hands in his pockets. "We have to watch over them until they get back up again. They're our comrades…our friends, and we can't abandon them now. And even though they're supposedly the enemy in this exam, they're out of it for the moment."

Both Ino and Chouji nodded, emerged from their hiding spots and told the ANBU that they would watch over the incapacitated team.

"Very well," the tiger-masked ANBU began. "I'll leave it in your hands." He turned to see an unconscious Naruto, shaking in extreme tension. _'I'll ask Hokage-sama about Naruto-kun when I file my report,'_ Tenzou thought before he and his purple-haired partner vanished into thin air.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Team Dosu, 11:59 pm)

"We are approaching our target," Dosu spoke up as they were moving several hundred meters to carry out their order. "Be on your guard."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N**: Well, there you have it, folks. That's another chapter down and I hope that you enjoyed the fight scene. Let me know what you think of the battle choreography. I decided to give Team Ten a bit of air time to add to some of the hilarity.

_The power-hungry Snake Wizard made his mark…in triplicate. Team Ten watch over their fallen comrades, who are now struggling to gain possession of their bodies once again. The darkness, like a disease, may potentially take one of them._

_Team Dosu is fast-approaching. Will Team Seven wake up in time before their assault?_

_Jikai… (Next time…) on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Temptation of Soul and Sound Pressure_

**Romaji Guide**

**Ne(zu)**: rat

**Tori**: bird

**Uma**: horse

**Mi**: snake, serpent; one of the 12 signs of the Chinese zodiac

**Hitsuji ("Ohitsuji")**: ram

**Hyouton: Hyoumu no Jutsu (Ice Release: Ice Fog Technique)**: D-rank supplementary ninjutsu; user creates a lighter but chilling fog to reduce vision to zero visibility; akin to **Kirigakure no Jutsu (Hidden Mist Technique** or, depending on some translations, **The Art of Hiding in the Mist)**

**Kusanagi (no Tsurugi: Kuu no Tachi)**: Grass-Cutter (Sword: Long Sword of the Heavens); name of Orochimaru's longsword (Narutopedia)

**Sen'ei Jashu (Hidden Shadow Snake Hands)**: C-rank offensive close- to mid-range ninjutsu; allows the user to eject snakes from their wrist of sleeve, usually after a punching motion; the snake are used primarily to attack from a distance and, being snakes, can cause multiple wounds on the victims body, or hold them in place and can even poison the target (Narutopedia)

**Tatsu**: dragon

**Tsuchi Bunshin**: Earth Clone or Earth Replication

**Kitsune no Hijutsu: Kiki Gyoushi (Secret Art of the Foxes: Ghastly Stare)**: unclassified supplementary close- to mid-range hijutsu; passive skill; Doshaburi's face becomes dark and dreadful with red eyes, with a stare laced with a small amount of ki warn targets of possible retaliation (created)

**Hebi-Sennin**: oftentimes translated as "Snake Sage," and, in other cases, "Snake Wizard"

**Magen: Tsuta Wana no Jutsu**: Demonic Illusion: Ivy Snare Technique—see Chapter Nine for details on this genjutsu if you have forgotten

**Densetsu no Nin**: Ninja of Legend or Legendary Ninja

**Magen: Sakura Mugen Kajuen (Demonic Illusion: Grove of Infinite Cherry Blossoms)**: D-rank supplementary genjutsu; user creates an illusionary grove of sakura trees that distorts all five senses of the target (created)—based off the anime Samurai Deeper Kyo

**Yomi**: the underworld

**Magen: Baraben Boufuu (Demonic Illusion: Rose Petal Gale)**: C-rank offensive/defensive genjutsu; the user flings special, hand-crafted, red rose-petal-like shuriken at the enemy; with the aid of chakra strings, the shuriken can hover in air to block or defend projectiles (created)

**Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique)**: C-rank offensive/defensive/supplementary ninjutsu; allows the user to summon various creatures through blood pact; type of animals summoned are varied (Narutopedia)

**Katon: Jouka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Sacred Fire Technique)**: B-rank offensive long-range ninjutsu; user spews out a blue flame in the shape of a phoenix with wings widespread (created)

**Uki Goshi**: "hip toss"; Judo-style throw that uses the enemy's momentum against him or her

**Kage Buyou**: Shadow of the Dancing Leaf, or Dancing Leaf Shadow

**Hirairyuu Rendan (Flying Thunder Dragon Combo)**: High C-rank offensive ninjutsu-taijutsu maneuver; after user uses **Kage Buyou (Dancing Leaf Shadow)**, he/she then sends a barrage of kicks upward to bump the target higher and higher; the user then sends a bombardment of spin-kicks, elbow strikes and a lightning-enhanced hammer blow to send the target plummeting to the ground (created)

**ANBU**: Abbreviation for **An**satsu Senjutsu Tokushu **Bu**tai (Special Assassination and Tactical Squad)—I forgot to put up this beforehand, but I know that most people know what they do.

**Kaimon (Initial Gate** or **Gate of Opening)**: first of the Eight Inner Gates that releases the brain's limit on the total strain on the muscles, giving the user five times their normal strength (Narutopedia)

**Fuuton: Fuujin no Tsume (Wind Release: Talons of the Wind God)**: C-rank offensive close- to mid-range ninjutsu; allows the user to channel wind-based chakra into his or her limbs without handseals to form a hook-like blade of wind (created)

**Hyouton: Yuki-Onna no Tsume (Ice Release: Claws of the Snow-Woman)**: C-rank offensive close- to mid-range hijutsu; allows the user to channel a blend of water and wind-natured chakra into his or her limbs to create a hook-like blade (created)

**Hakke Shiki Fuuin**: Eight Trigrams Dead Demon Consuming Seal; seal located on Naruto's stomach to hold back the chakra of the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox; consists of the Shishou Fuuin (Four Symbols Seal) and the Hakke no Fuuin (Eight Trigrams Divine Seal)

**Gogyou Fuuin**: Five Elements Seal

**Saru**: monkey

**Oushi**: ox

**Ten no Juin**: Curse Seal of Heaven

**Raiton: Shinkei Douyou no Jutsu (Lightning Release: Nerve Disturbance Technique)**: D-rank offensive/supplementary close-range ninjutsu; user shoots out a weak static charge to make the target's nerves to go haywire or render the target unconscious (created)

**Youjutsu: Kasumime no Jutsu (Dark Art: Dim Eyesight Technique)**: D-rank supplementary genjutsu; allows the user to cloud the vision of the target (created; inspired by Diablo II Necromancer's **Dim Vision** curse)


	13. Temptation of Soul and Sound Pressure

**A/N**: I'm back at it again, ladies and gentlemen. I think that it's all uphill for the moment.

**News from Reviews (VERY IMPORTANT—Please Read)**: I have just reached over the 300-review mark. Adding onto that, last chapter had a record-breaking 58 reviews, which may be subject to change, and I appreciate the fact that some would still be reading up to this point. I think that I have lost some at the very beginning of the story. I also feel that I may have lost several readers on account of comparing this fic to…_canon_, which is taboo in my vocabulary.

You have to throw away your preconceived notions of how Team Seven is in canon, folks. If I were to be forced to stick with the regular chain of events, then this story would not exist. Any story on this site breaks canon in some form or fashion. If we were not allowed to do so, then this entire website would not be made in the first place.

With that said, I will play no favorites, and I will do no character bashing…

Well, I may do some 'slight' bashing to villains, but they'll still remain ridiculously strong, nonetheless.

I just decided to level the playing field along the lines of the power gradient. I gave Naruto a power boost, so I gave the other two some amplifications as well to balance out the squad. This was a counter-measure to prevent Naruto from looking like a deity-like figure (a sort of a checks and balances system, if you can see "underneath the underneath"). He only knows ninjutsu theory, and he applies it when necessary for his exotic arsenal of jutsu. Sure, he may have all kinds of chakra to use at his disposal, but the more jutsu that he learns; the longer it will take for him to master all of them, especially when he adds in new factors to the techniques that he already knows. So, in essence, he is not _that _powerful (thoughts courtesy of **Iseriad**).

Next, look at pre-time-skip Sakura. She was close to useless in canon, save for being an excellent chakra reader and having nigh-flawless chakra control—a perfect candidate for a genjutsu-type kunoichi, in my honest opinion. I also thought that it would be interesting for Sakura to put that cliché internal construct to good use and surprise some people with her hidden strength. This will pave the way for her to be a long-ranged fighter to a certain degree.

Others will get boosts, too, to keep things impartial, like Rock Lee, who generally gets overlooked in most fan fiction.

As I regress to the matter at hand, try to suck it up and not be nitpicky with details. They will give some villains a run for their money as a team-based effort—not individually, even though they lack proper combat experience. That's the key difference between the greenhorn and the elite: _experience_. Please keep that in mind, ladies and gentlemen.

With regards to Orochimaru wanting Sasuke in particular, that was _hardly_ the case. Originally, he wanted to possess Uchiha Itachi and Kaguya Kimimaro before focusing on Sasuke. However, certain circumstances made those choices null and void. Orochimaru aims for possessing a strong, able body worthy of merit. The Sharingan just gives him an edge to learn ninjutsu faster.

**Paladeus** mentioned to me something very enlightening. It was with regards to how Kishimoto's manga is turning out and how fan fiction authors construct their stories.

"_We make our own choices for the plot and such and say 'screw you' to whoever dislikes it. He's_ (Kishimoto's) _doing the same, really."_

What the aforementioned rant boils down to is this: Folks, enjoy the story for what it is. That's all I'm asking of you. I'm not pleading in the slightest, but if you don't like what you're reading, then please kindly move to the side and not review; either that or just look at it with an open mind and/or indifference.

**To those that I have sent review replies**: If I sounded a bit brash and brusque, I apologize, but some of the comments kind of struck a nerve when you mentioned "canon." Please take no offense.

When you give suggestions for the plotline, I probably will not read them, but if you want some fluff within the chapters, now those I can do. Send those via private messaging and I'll simmer on it. I already have an idea about where to go in this story. If you feel at all discouraged regarding how my outcomes will turn out, then by all means, either write your own tale or read someone else's story. That's all I'm saying on the matter. Case closed, and you will hear no more of this issue on power from me (I declare…the things authors do and they _still_ have dissenters if they branch away to other sources…fickle public).

**Point of Clarification: I'll clear up something for those who think that "Sannin" means "legendary ninja" (this is especially reiteration to you, Haus719). It does not, and I will prove it through irrefutable kanji and logic. Sannin (**三忍**) literally means "three ninja." Sennin (**仙人**) can be interpreted as "hermit," "fairy" or "wizard." Each translation fits well with Jiraiya, Tsunade and Orochimaru, respectively, in regards to their abilities and mannerisms (an interesting correlation, if I say so myself). Densetsu (**伝説**) means "legend," "folklore" or "tradition." Team Sarutobi was given the title of **_**Sannin**_** as a collective group (from whom, I will not discuss, since that would be a manga spoiler), so I will mention them from hereafter as either "**_**one**_** of the Sannin," a Densetsu no Nin (**伝説の忍**)—meaning "Ninja of Folklore/Legend or Legendary Ninja"—or as a "Sennin" of their particular field of summoning. It would be irrational and a wee bit silly to mention one of them as just a "Sannin." No one person can be "three ninja" at once. Think about it.**

_**I tend to leave off the pluralizing of Japanese words. For instance, I just say genin, chuunin, jounin, Hokage, jutsu, sensei, etc. That could either refer to one or to more than one of each, depending on the context in which it is used. I tend to shy away from that because the Japanese typically do NOT add an "s" onto Romaji. That is a common mistranslation, and it lacks a companion in its mora.**_

_**To those that are having a hard time reading how I phrase things, please know this: I deliberately do not end sentences with a prepositional phrase while I'm narrating (things like of, about, from, etc.). That is how English sentence structure is supposed to be. The same applies in regards to contractions. I do not use them unless I put them in dialogue or use them while in the Author's Note. It just sounds wrong to me from a personal standpoint.**_

I decided to enable the anonymous reviews again, but this time, I'll only pay heed to those who give constructive criticism. To the anonymous reviewers, be sure to leave a valid e-mail address if you want to know when I update. Anything that is idiotic by my standards will be deleted on the spot.

Please heed my sapient wisdom.

With that lot/long-winded rant out of the way, let us continue…

_Saishuukai… (Last time…) on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

"_What did that creep do to Forehead Girl!?" Ino shouted. "What the hell did he do the entire team!? He just knocked them out cold with a cheap shot!"_ 'Although…' _she mentally added_. 'I never knew that Forehead knew _any_ jutsu, much less a dark art…' _In fact, she was more so astonished by her rival's technique than Naruto's wooden sucker-punch. Either way, Forehead's squad had changed after their first C-turned-A-rank mission. She was impressed, but she would never admit it outright that Forehead was getting stronger._

"_You know that there aren't any cheap shots in the world of shinobi," the portly boy reasoned. He was impressed by the other team's enthusiasm and final shots before they had fallen._

"_Either way, it's going to be troublesome," Shikamaru drawled with his hands in his pockets. "We have to watch over them until they get back up again. They're our comrades…our friends, and we can't abandon them now. And even though they're supposedly the enemy in this exam, they're out of it for the moment."_

_Both Ino and Chouji nodded, emerged from their hiding spots and told the ANBU that they would watch over the incapacitated team._

"_Very well," the tiger-masked ANBU began. "I'll leave it in your hands." He turned to see an unconscious Naruto, shaking in extreme tension._ 'I'll ask Hokage-sama about Naruto-kun when I file my report,' _Tenzou thought before he and his purple-haired partner vanished into thin air._

_XXXXXXXXXX_

_(Team Dosu, 11:59 pm)_

"_We are approaching our target," Dosu spoke up as they were moving several hundred meters to carry out their order. "Be on your guard."_

_**Chapter Thirteen:**__ Temptation of Soul and Sound Pressure_

(Forest of Death, Day Three, 12:01 am)

"How do we get them to quit shaking?" Ino worriedly asked while holding a convulsing Sakura in her lap. Even though Billboard Brow was her number-one rival and competitor for Sasuke-kun, she was her friend and she did not want to lose her. The young mind-walker rubbed Sakura's perspiring temples with a cloth that she had previously packed.

Chouji was in the midst of setting up traps along the exceedingly large tree with a large opening at its base to provide cover from possible precipitation. The portly shinobi was looking up at the cloudy night sky.

"I have no idea, Ino," he answered. He turned around to face her. "We don't know what Orochimaru did to them. The only evidence that we have are those tattoos on the back of their necks. There's nothing else we can do but hope for the best and that they'll pull through." The hefty chip-eater sensed that it was going to storm heavily in the next few hours. His gaze stopped on a ball of ocher fuzz on a nearby branch.

'_That must be Naruto's fox,'_ he thought as he expanded his arms to grab the little critter. He laid it down beside him. _'We wouldn't want to forget him…He sure does look tasty…'_ He shook off that thought. Naruto would murder him if he initiated to follow through on that. He was _so_ hungry, but his willpower maintained its hold…until he fumbled through his pack to pull out some more chips.

"I don't know, guys," Shikamaru said while watching over the twitching figures of Sasuke and Naruto inside the base of the tree. "It could be some type of amplification seal…not a tattoo, and that's just going off gut instinct and theory alone." _'Either way…'_ he mentally added while he noticed a purple haze coming from the three down-and-out shinobi. _'This doesn't look good. How troublesome…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Naruto's Mindscape, 12:02 am)

The blond-haired shinobi fluttered his clouded eyes open to see a large snake with a sinister aura emanating from it. The serpent had a shaggier hairstyle similar to the Hebi-teme and it was…just staring at him inside the dampened corridors like he was its prey.

"_**Good**_," the pallid snake hissed. "_**I s-s-see that you're awake…**_"

"What the hell are you?" Naruto asked.

"_**I…am your conscience…**_" It smoothly replied as it slithered closer to the downed boy.

Naruto was not fooled at all with that lie. "What is it that you want?"

"_**It is not I that wants a thing, but I can tell that you desire…s-s-something else…**_"

Naruto stared at the albino python with incredulity. The narrow gaze and sour look enhanced that curiosity. "And what might that be?"

"_**I have looked into your memories-s-s, and I can s-s-see that you desire acknowledgment and recognition,**_" the serpent smoothly stated. "_**You yearn to be loved by all of your village kinsmen. Unfortunately, that will not be s-s-so.**_"

The pointy-eared genin clenched his fists and closed his eyes. He _was_, and _still is_, shunned and resented by most.

"_**Do you…**_**want**_** that acknowledgment that you so crave, hmm? Then I suggest that you leave this dump known as Konoha and join me…**_"

_Temptation often leads to ruin._

Naruto thought back on the positives of his current life. Even though _most_ of the villagers treated him like the local untouchable, there had been a select few that have opened up to him. In fact, he could now count his important people with two hands.

'_Jiisan…'_

Saru-jijii treated him like a typical grandson; lifting up his spirits whenever he felt down and treated him to ramen every so often…that was, whenever the old man was not enclosed in his office, filling out unnecessary paperwork. Naruto could understand that he could never be there all the time for him, so he forgave his surrogate gramps due to the circumstances by the council.

'_Iruka-sensei…'_

His wise, "elder brother" figure, Umino Iruka, was at first indifferent to the blond wonder. Over time, as well as over mishaps and pranks, his old teacher treated him as close to an equal than most of his previous sensei. Iruka-sensei pushed him to succeed whenever he started to slack off. It was a watershed moment in their friendship when he saved his former instructor from that traitorous bastard, Mizuki. Iruka-sensei was the second person that acknowledged him as Uzumaki Naruto of Konohagakure, not the Kyuubi locked away behind his navel.

A little while after that incident, Squad Number Seven was created.

How, by a test of will, had they made it to this point?

In retrospect, Naruto thought that the team itself was doomed to initial failure, unless each unit of the team changed his or her ways of thinking. The sum of the whole was as great as its parts.

'_Kakashi-sensei…'_

Naruto would admit to himself that, although he was a lackadaisical instructor who read verbal smut, the guy sure knew his shinobi tactics. He could stand to augment his teaching methods a bit…and not be late _all_ the time. Either way, his sensei had not treated him as if he were a malevolent infestation. That earned the Elite Jounin a place in his heart.

'_Sakura…'_

It was an odd attraction at first, to say the least…Or was it the need to feel wanted that had him latch onto her, striving to gain some sort of attention?

Either way, when he tried to make an obnoxious advance on her, she was quick to beat him senselessly, much like the way he did long ago to the people that teased her for the size of her brow-line. That was, if she were not swooning for the number-one rookie…

In any case, Naruto was amazed at how his "little sister" progressed; from an Uchiha groupie with hardly any skill to a kick-ass kunoichi in a brief amount of time. Maybe it had to do with the lost scrolls that he had found by sheer luck…

Aside from her…eccentricities, she was now dependable, and in the case that he needed instruction with genjutsu, she would be there to gladly help him out in a moment's notice. It was a long-awaited respite that she toned down a bit. She now knew what it meant to be a ninja through dedication and hard work.

Since she felt proud of her newfound abilities, she finally acknowledged the talents of others, instead of squawking like a parrot about how great Sasuke-teme was…

'_Sasuke…'_

He was the impenetrable ice in the heat of the Land of Fire.

Sasuke-teme thought that he knew a lot of things, but when Naruto's shadow clones sparred with him in ninjutsu without the aid of his doujutsu, he was…inconceivably outclassed in any which way possible before they dispelled and sent back the experience to Naruto. Sasuke's fire-element techniques were fed by Naruto's wind-element attacks, but were then drenched by one of his alternates—water. Sasuke tried to channel lightning against him (when he learned how to), but he just blew it away with his dominant elemental affinity—wind. Their chakra natures came back full circle in synchronizing harmony. It was just a fluke that they managed to come up with the Burning Hell hijutsu during the second bell test, but when he and Sasuke pondered on it afterward, it made sense.

Although Naruto had the fixed advantage of ninja elements at his disposal, that did not mean that he could easily defeat the last, loyal Uchiha. If one were at an affinity disadvantage, then he or she would have to rely on skill and improvisation to defeat an opponent. It was no wonder why Sasuke was deemed a prodigy…a genius…words that have been banes in Naruto's vocabulary. In the eyes of the blond, he was clever, to say the least. That much he would give credit to the dark-haired shinobi.

Naruto had then recollected on how he beat the smug look from the Uchiha's face when he gained the upper hand against him in a practice spar. Sasuke called it lucky; Naruto called it ingenious insight, along with a string of odd fortune. The blond decided to show a bit of modesty by lending a hand to assist Sasuke back on his feet (and not rub it in his face), as well as helping him with some of the harder jutsu that he could not master.

From shooting ideas back and forth, they found solid, theoretical evidence to help Sasuke override that hump in his individual training methods. The Hirairyuu Rendan, an outdoor follow-up to using the Dancing Leaf Shadow with powered-down lightning, and the Jouka no Jutsu had proven that the fruits of their labor and hard work paid off. Those were Sasuke's trump cards for the moment, aside from lesser forms of Katon and Raiton ninjutsu. Even though the typical, brooding Sasuke would not admit it, he had indirectly expressed his gratitude…with a genuine, heartfelt smile after their training was finished. It was something unprecedented in the time that he had met the dark-haired avenger.

'_Haku-chan…'_

She was his first friend outside of Konoha's walls, even though they had met as enemies on the battlefield. She could sympathize with his situation, and that felt all the more comforting. He could tell that the bond with the young lady was a strong one indeed. She was steadfast, good-natured, and slightly compliant; conversely, in the case of the villagers, she was a real hard-ass and staunch defender for his equality among the masses.

They both knew struggles and strife, and their childhoods were neither fairy tales nor picnics in the park.

They were despised for things far beyond their control; however, it was ironic that the two shared a similar kekkei genkai. Haku wielded ice as if it was second nature to her, like breathing, but Naruto had to put forth more effort into freezing water. He pondered if he had to use snow as a medium for performing his techniques. He also wondered if a bloodline limit _evolves_ when it would be passed down from generation to generation. Would a new kekkei genkai come from certain kinds of heredity? Or would it be due to a genetic mutation that makes wielding the bloodline trait all the more easier?

Nonetheless, he was fortunate to find a confidant that he could rely on if he was feeling blue or down in the mouth. She was also a close friend who could walk a mile in his shoes and feel the pain of loneliness as well. His secrets were safe with her, and vice versa.

And speaking of girls with kekkei genkai…

'_Hinata-chan…'_

He smiled.

'_Dear, sweet, innocent Hinata-chan…'_

To the blond boy, she was as weird as they came…but in a good way. She was soft-spoken, gentle, and she was a kindred, warmhearted spirit in a clan of cold gazes and a frigid air of superiority. Naruto had a feeling that her life, albeit in high society, had a dark side to it as well, since he could perceive it through her sunny, opalescent orbs. Unlike the hardened Hyuuga, those eyes held warmth but with a twinge of hopelessness and self-doubt, almost as if most of the problems were packed onto her delicate shoulders…

He shook his head. He did _not_ know from whence that thought had come. Damn teenage hormones! Damn Kyuubi! He tossed aside those meandering feelings.

He had a seal to expunge.

"You're wrong on one thing, Hebi-teme," Naruto spoke after a while. "I _do_ have people that are dear to me, and I will give my dying breath to see that they're safe. They've acknowledged me; they have accepted me for who I am. Sorry, but the head games won't work this time around, pal!"

The snakelike effigy became riled up with confirmed hissing. It was but so close. It snapped open its jaws, exposing its sharp fangs. Naruto's eyes bugged out and jumped back. The area where the snake had stricken began to melt.

'_Note to self…Avoid being bitten at any cost…'_ he thought. He paused when he heard the familiar, booming bellow.

"**Naruto, follow my voice!"** Kyuubi roared. **"And don't try to be the proud hero this time. If you face it alone, you **_**will**_** die!"**

'_You don't have to tell me twice…'_ Naruto dashed through the labyrinth of tunnels, all the while being pursued by the snake and its vile aura. The dark haze seemed to flood the tunnels that Naruto was passing, and he could already feel weak in the knees and limbs.

Naruto clutched his chest. It appeared that the fox-spirit was indeed correct; it _was_ bad for him. He had to hurry to his tenant so they could figure out how to remove the seal…and _fast_.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Sakura's Mindscape, 12:07 am)

The pink-haired girl's mind was a foggy purple color with no definite directions of up, down, left or right. It was only a murky space, occupied by two larger figures and a short, pink-haired girl.

"**Dammit Pinky, why did you have to be so fucking careless!?"** her Inner Will shouted at her outward counterpart while she was choking the evil serpent with her bare hands. Its snake-like eyes were bugging out to the maximum surface area of its cranium. Before her mental construct came into play, the snake was snidely remarking on how Sakura lacked power and felt inadequate to her other teammates.

"Hey, the snake bastard marked me because of Naruto!" the pinkette retorted while giving the serpent some weak strikes to the gut. "If it weren't for him testing out his wood-using abilities, then none of this would've happened!" During the Academy, she had read a bit on Orochimaru, but the only data shown to the public was that he was an S-class criminal with an alias of the "Kyodaija"—the "Great Snake." She had no idea that he had an inclination for seeing, learning and acquiring new jutsu…by any means necessary.

"**I'm gonna give him a piece of my mind when we're done with beating back this curse mark…Shannaro!"** Her stranglehold on the snakelike fiend became a powerful vice-grip as it began to shrink a bit.

"No!" Sakura shouted, which earned a strange look from her chalky Inner Persona. "_We're_ going to show him!" She gave Inner-Sakura an evil grin while giving a swift thrust-kick to the beast's underbelly, grunting.

Her Inner-Self admired Pinky's enthusiasm, as well as that sinister smirk. She was starting to like the pinkette.

Then, a thought occurred to her. She wondered how to kill the horrible reptile in her clutches. It was just so coincidental that her outer-self was ready for the next level. **"Think you can imagine something up for me…? I need something sharp to chop off this bastard's head. This is your mind, by the way, so anything goes."**

Sakura gave her Inner Will a small grin. "I never knew about that." She put a finger to her chin and contemplated. "Now how do I do it…?"

"**All you have to do is focus,"** she replied. Inner-Sakura twitched and looked at the serpentine influence. **"And I told you to shut the hell up!"**

XXXXXXXXXX

(Sasuke's Mindscape, 12:10 am)

The dark-haired Uchiha heard crying in the distance and ran to the source to find a version of himself…only five years younger, standing in a desolate street of familiar nothingness. His face was etched in anger in the empty avenue of the Uchiha compound.

"I wasn't strong enough!" he shouted to no one in particular. "I couldn't save my parents because I lacked power! Why did it have to be this way!?" He collapsed on the ground and bawled. The tears ran nonstop.

The present-day Sasuke momentarily reflected upon that day with the memory of his dead parents, Mikoto and Fugaku, flashing before his eyes. That feeling of rage was creeping up on him when he recounted that horrible night. The presence he exuded forced his younger self to look up with slightly bloodshot eyes.

"What… (sniff) are you… (sniff) doing here?" asked the miniature Sasuke who was rubbing his eyes from profusely tearing.

Sasuke calmed himself down while looking at his former self with solemn-looking eyes. He knew that he could not save everyone that night. He could not outdo Itachi in the slightest. How could a seven-year-old Academy student take on his elder brother that had experience in the ANBU Black Ops? "I don't know, but I know that we're in my mind—"

"Foolish brother…Your weakness sickens me. That is why I spared you," an eerie, deadpanned tone filtered out of nowhere. Soon after, a dark image evanescently appeared with a horrible essence emanating from it. The two versions of Sasuke could only look on as the aura materialized into a familiar face. Both of their faces were etched in horror and could only mutter one word to the figure in his ANBU uniform…

"…Itachi…"

"That's it. Run away…Run away and cling onto your pathetic life," the Itachi construct stated, sans emotion.

"_**Would you care to receive my power, Sasuke-kun? You know that you can't beat him by your lonesome…kukuku…**_"

The two dark-haired avengers hastily turned around to locate the voice, which had been from a serpent in the snake fiend's likeness. The energy pouring forth from both figures was raw and overbearing.

"_**Your clan was decimated. Everyone was killed…**__'_ The snake paused for a moment to gaze straight into Sasuke's eyes. The serpentine eyes bore through to his soul like a rusty drill. _'__**You watched them die. If only you had strength to best him…**__"_

'_This isn't looking good…'_ Sasuke surmised to himself as he tried to shake off the pressure.

He was jammed among competing forces: retribution, vengeance through hatred, perseverance through natural talent, and thirst for more power. The situation itself would seem easy from his old philosophy, for he would take that unnatural "gift" and use it to defeat his brother. However, he had skepticism toward the effects of the seal. Would he lose himself if he were to take the present from the snake bastard or would that power put his comrades in jeopardy? Would he become a flight risk if the seal influenced him in some way? Could he somehow take part of the power without the warped suggestions?

Would Naruto and Sakura accept this accursed source of energy? He doubted that Naruto would give in due to his bullheadedness. It was synthetic power. The dobe stressed the issue of relying on pure power and personal strength. Naruto told him to work hard for skill. Power was earned through ardor and commitment, not copied, granted or handed around on a silver platter.

He was not too sure about how Sakura would take it. She stayed reserved about her training, which was rather odd. Normally, he would have been the enigmatic one. Sakura would be there, stroking his ego and asking to hang out with him had the dobe not found those scrolls on Gatou's barge. It was a pleasant quiet, to say the least, but he would not want to hurt Sakura's feelings—again—by admitting out loud that her former bantering was annoying. Maybe he was getting a little soft when it came to the fairer sex…

He shook off that notion. He would have to keep that thought under control and incognito. He could not get involved with any girl until Itachi was safely out of the way. Sasuke could not put past the thought that if he had a loved one, then Itachi would target her just to elicit more rage and fury from Sasuke. He would fall further into the darkness into which Itachi shoved him.

Much to his dismay, many questions and thoughts flooded his mind even more as he clenched his fists. _'I need to get out of this…But how? What would Naruto do?'_

He would think up of a quick-witted solution in a pinch. That was what he would do.

"I'm…scared," his younger form said with shaky knees.

"Don't worry. We'll figure this out…one step at a time." Sasuke activated his doujutsu and sprung into action, along with his younger counterpart. There was only one way to find out…

That was to take the situation head-on, just like the dobe would, with roaring fists.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, location unknown, 12:23 am)

"Whatever you do…Don't cancel the exam," Orochimaru hissed as he stood in front of a shaking Anko. "Three of my own are under your care." The Snake Wizard walked and faded out of view, but his voice reverberated around the second examiner. "If you as much take away my joy, then it will be the end of the Leaf Village…"

Anko had found her traitorous mentor and engaged him in combat. Once again, he managed to give the Tokubetsu Jounin the slip, leaving her a bit shaken from the focused ki and thwarted double-suicide tactic on a replacement. The vile snake arrogantly told her that he had originally come to seek out the chuunin hopefuls that were…fit for his needs from Konoha. He had especially taken a liking to the last Uchiha, and his other teammates proved to be a bonus, since they had grand potential in the eyes of the Hebi-Sennin. He marked them with the same seal that was on Anko's nape.

Shaking herself from the confrontation, the snake-mistress was thoroughly impressed that a team of _genin_ managed to land a mark on her former sensei, much less crippling the bastard with only one arm and clouded eyesight. Now _that_ took guts, and _that_ earned her respect, since she almost captured him in his weakened state.

It was either sheer determination on their part or Orochimaru had gone a little too soft, knowing full and well that they could have been wiped out by some of his more potent techniques in his vastly expanding repertoire. She assumed that he did not want to hurt the "precious cargo." Nevertheless, he greatly underestimated the unknown elements that were Sasuke's teammates.

The lady snake-charmer was hardly awed by the younger crowd who thought that they were the best. Anko stood corrected by the bizarre turn of events.

'_Team Seven…'_ she thought as she let out a breath that was unconsciously held. _'I didn't know that you squirts went toe-to-toe with that bastard, maimed him…and lived…hopefully…'_ She rubbed the tender spot where her sealed Ten no Juin was placed. It was a one in ten chance that they could pull through. Even though she was not religious, she silently prayed to Kami-sama for the first time, hoping that all three could beat back and stay above the influence, before she headed for the tower to file her report.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Hokage Mansion, 12:24 am)

"Hokage-sama," his chuunin bodyguard said. "Two ANBU are here to see you."

Sarutobi had that creeping headache in his skull as he rose from his bed. He could foresee that it was concerning his former pupil. If he were to take a phrase from one of his genin, then he would say that it was going to be "troublesome." He silently nodded, signaling his assistant to let Tenzou and Yuugao into his home away from home.

"Hokage-sama," the tiger-masked ANBU began, with his partner beside him. "It appears that Orochimaru managed to slither his way into Konoha by killing a competing team from the Hidden Grass Village and…stealing the face from the kunoichi on said team."

The Professor was right on the money with his intuition. The wayward genius that was his student tiptoed into Konoha unannounced, causing a silent stir. The migraine was about to erupt in full force. "Continue." He motioned for them to be seated on the couch. "Could you bring us some tea?" His helper moved into the kitchen to prepare the drinks as Sarutobi's eyes panned back to Tenzou.

"Getting to the prime matter at hand, my partner and I caught wind of the news by use of my wood clones and we dashed off to find him. However, certain things became…complicated…"

The Sandaime Hokage had an inkling of an insight that it pertained to Team Seven. Uchiha Sasuke would probably be a pawn in his hasty quest for immortality and learning every jutsu known in the shinobi world on account of his special kekkei genkai. "Go on."

"My partner and I felt the strong surge of the Kyuubi's chakra," Yuugao spoke up, which earned a slightly wide-eyed look from Sarutobi. "We dashed to where the presence was strongest." She sighed. "It turned out that Orochimaru was specifically targeting Team Seven and it was beyond belief that they, a squad of genin, held their own against an S-rank criminal until we arrived." She looked over to her partner to continue.

Tenzou nodded in accordance. "I managed to catch Orochimaru before he was about to hit Naruto-kun in his stomach with the Five Elements Seal. We detained the criminal, but once again, things took on a bizarre twist…" He scratched behind his head, and the sheepish look was well hidden behind his mask. "It turns out that Naruto-kun has the same Mokuton ability like me, and he socked Orochimaru unintentionally on the side of his face."

The Third Great Fire Shadow now felt the pounding headache. That boy was a hardhead, and he was going to personally rebuke his surrogate grandson for even attempting to use his strictly forbidden ability if he were to pull through. On the plus side, he had a personal tutor for him when the time would come…that was, if the Sandaime did not horribly disable the boy before getting to that point in time.

Sarutobi then had a growing preoccupation with the possibility of eyewitnesses. He hoped that none of the council caught sight of that. "Were there any witnesses, aside from Team Seven and yourselves?" The helper came back with a tray of delectable jasmine tea to sooth his nerves. He nodded a "thank you" to his assistant while he bowed.

"Team Ten was present when it occurred, Hokage-sama," Yuugao said as she daintily picked up her cup of brew. She removed her mask and tilted it away from her face. "And that was all who were in attendance. It was due to Uzumaki Naruto-kun's…_display_ that had Orochimaru slip by us and had his snakes clamp down on the necks of the entire team. From the bite marks, a triple-tomoe pattern appeared. It may be some kind of seal, but we didn't have the chance to examine them, for we had to come here immediately.

"Before he fled, Naruto sliced off his arm, Sasuke electrocuted the nerve endings so it wouldn't grow back, and Sakura temporarily clogged his eyesight with some kind of…youjutsu, if I remember correctly." She paused for a moment to sip her tea and let the news sink in. The Professor had an eyebrow raised in disbelief. "My comrade can vouch for me, Hokage-sama."

"It is indeed true, Hokage-sama," Tenzou said as he removed his mask to consume the tasty beverage. He sipped a bit and thanked the Hokage's helper with a nod. "Currently, Team Ten is watching over the indisposed team." The wood-user yawned and covered his mouth. It was a long evening. "I wished that we could step in, but that would result in the team's disqualification."

Sarutobi wished that he could step in as well, but that would, as his tiger-masked ANBU agent mentioned, bar Squad Seven in earnest from progressing onward. He held his chin with his available hand and hoped that the three could overcome what Orochimaru had done to them. Something was a bit…unsettling for the Professor that put his mind into chaotic unrest.

'_Just what else are you planning…Orochimaru?'_ Why would his former student mark all _three_ with the Cursed Seal of Heaven? It probably had to do with the bountiful array of talent laid out before him that made him squeal with pleasure.

A maturing Sharingan wielder…

A sprouting Mokuton and Hyouton wielder with a powerful spirit sealed in his gut…

A civilian with antiquated secret arts from kin abroad…

In the eyes of the Snake Wizard, that was a treasure trove of jutsu waiting to be analyzed, dissected and mastered.

He drank a bit of his tea and reflected on his past actions. If he could wind back the hands of time, then his corrupted student would have never been this way and Naruto could have received formal training. He thought to himself that he was a fool for doting on his favorite pupil that went errant and eschewing the scion of his predecessors and late successor that craved for attention and learning knew things. From Sarutobi's forced negligence, Hashirama-sensei must have been rolling in his grave while Minato-kun was churning violently in the stomach of the Shinigami.

He would have to try to rescind some of the added power from the council, because during the time of the Kyuubi incident, they took that window of opportunity while the Hokage slot was temporarily vacant after Minato had passed on to seize as much power as feasibly possible. Sarutobi hated underhanded politics…and he mentally vowed to try anything in his jurisdiction to rectify the matter.

In any case, Sarutobi would have to issue Team Ten a mandate to prevent them from mentioning Naruto's Mokuton ability to anyone else. From the various reports, Yamanaka Ino had a loud mouth for gossip, but not on par with "the Mouth that Roared" in vibrant fervor and gusto, which was Uzumaki Naruto, but his surrogate grandson knew when to be silent, especially with the Kyuubi sealed in his belly. Ino, from what he had heard, held no such reservations.

But it was a moot point; he would have to lay down _his_ law to protect Naruto from the politically power-hungry councilmen and councilwomen. They would be quick to kiss up to Naruto for the neglect and pamper him like some spoiled brat, all the while planning to wed him off to dozens of women of capable birthing age….

He shuddered slightly, which went unnoticed by those around him. To think that the boy would be forced into a politics-induced harem…

Now that was just wrong, in and of itself. He would protect Naruto that way, just like he did with Haku, so when the time would come to initiate the "Last Clan Heir" addendum in the rulebook, Naruto would be able to choose on his own those that he would feel comfortable with being life-long partners.

His thoughts were halted when Tenzou spoke up to announce his other agenda. "If I may, Hokage-sama, I wish to speak to you regarding the future regimen for Naruto-kun and his Mokuton training." What unfortunate timing!

Indeed, it was going to be a _long_ night for the Professor. It appeared that rest was for the weary, and he was getting old. He had to make it quick and concise, instead of sticking to the guns that were his long-winded lectures.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Hokage Tower Lounge, same time)

"You've got to be kidding me," remarked a dark-haired, crimson-eyed jounin known as Yuuhi Kurenai, Konoha's resident genjutsu mistress. She was wearing a red undershirt with a dress that was oddly reminiscent of mummy wrappings, but that would all change soon. "There's no way that Naruto has one." _'Lucky bastard…Damn…'_ she inwardly cursed while pinching the bridge of her nose.

Kakashi displayed his patented "eye-smile" while reading through his pornographic novel for the third time. He was sitting on the couch opposite of his two fellow jounin. "On the contrary, Kurenai, the terms of this bet are now in my favor. _All_ of my students have a type of kekkei genkai, and to add on, one with clan techniques. It really was impeccable timing that Gai challenged me, saying that I couldn't luck out and have three kids with special abilities. I apologize that you two had to fall in the undertow of the small wager as well." He paused to catch their looks. They held their disbelief all _too_ well.

The masked Copy-Ninja continued. "You were all in attendance when I made public that Sakura had a bloodline limit when I registered my squad for the Chuunin exams, correct?" With a dual nod from Asuma and Kurenai, he pressed on. "Well, Naruto discovered his own genetic ability as well while training. That means, by default, I don't have to wear the green leotard…I mean, _jubilant raiment_, when we greet our students."

The bearded Asuma could only nod again, thunderstruck by the groundbreaking update regarding the bet. Why did he have to be the sucker this time around and bet against Kakashi's bizarre string of luck? He knew that he should have kept his mouth shut, but his manly pride, albeit a lazy one, spoke out for him.

All he could mutter was "Damn" and scratch the back of his head while looking down on the floor. He really needed a nicotine fix for the moment…as well as for future moments in the tight-fitting outfit, but no amount of cigarettes would ever heal the irreparable damage to his social life and mental health. Luckily, someone was going down with him in the record books alongside the duo of fashion disasters, Gai and Lee.

"Then what is his kekkei genkai?" Kurenai asked with a schooled expression. On the inside, however, she was livid. How could a no-name civilian have the bloodline limit of a clan, much less clan jutsu of which she never heard? And how was it that the loudmouth possessed a particular ability as well, aside from his current…affliction? The tardy pervert, Kakashi-san, had all the strange fortune.

The green-clad jounin immediately stood up behind the couch where Kakashi was seated. He was occupying himself by doing a round of five hundred push-ups to pass the time. He was not paying much attention, since he was focused on keeping up with his youthful physique, but he did catch Kurenai's question…or at least the tail end of it. Maito Gai was never one for being an attentive listener.

"My youthful rival, pray tell us. What is Naruto-kun's special ability?" Gai really wanted to know, since he was the initiator of the little betting pool for starters. It could just as well be more hype from his "eternal rival" about his spirited team that was eager for challenges. The spandex-wearing taijutsu master was skeptical regarding the issue, and he could tell that Kakashi would try any which way to weasel his way out of the viridian, one-piece garment.

"For your information, it's not what _is_,but what _are_ his kekkei genkai, and you're going to have to ask Naruto," Kakashi lazily drawled while flipping another page in _Make-Out Tactics_. "I hold confidentiality with my students, and one ability in question doesn't want to be revealed…especially in front of the council. Hokage-sama forbade him from even using it.

"He is, on the other hand, able to use another bloodline trait known as Hyouton, or the ability to create a kind of "ice-element," just like our newly instated Tokubetsu Jounin, Haku-san. That much I can tell.

"From brief observation, her bloodline is more developed than Naruto's, since he just acquired it through chakra heredity. Haku-san's kekkei genkai must have developed through the generations in Kirigakure, which allows her to master water and freeze it by sheer willpower, whereas Naruto's blend just recently happened on account of either an intermingling of chakra natures or a genetic mutation. I am not certain about it, but it does seem plausible." He looked up at the three jounin staring at him. "That's all you're getting from me. That bloodline limit qualifies, so I'm off the hook."

The quizzical looks from Asuma, Gai and Kurenai were priceless. The boy had _two_ kekkei genkai as well as the high chakra capacity from being the Nine-Tailed Fox's vessel? They wanted to find out post-haste by bombarding queries to Kakashi's blond-haired charge. The Copy Ninja could read their expressions, so he gently dissuaded them.

"Don't get your hopes up. He might not tell you about the other ability," Kakashi remarked from their puzzled faces. "Anyway, go ahead and get dressed into your…" He chucked lightly while turning another page. "…Proper attire…while I take a little rest." He turned to prop up his feet on the couch. He marked his page with his thumb, closed the book, held it to his chest and drifted off to sleep.

Kurenai had a somewhat indignant expression etched onto her face while Asuma's took on a sour, hangdog look.

Gai, for some reason or another, had his smile wiped clean off his face. His eternal rival one-upped him again.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Team Dosu, 1:30 am)

"So what's the plan?" Zaku confidently asked to his one-eyed teammate while crouching behind the bushes.

"We wait," Dosu replied as he was looking on at their target's team. He was surprised that another team had come to aid them. It would be all the more interesting in their surprise attack. "We'll strike at daybreak." He grabbed a squirrel from nearby and held it in place for the upcoming assault.

"Sounds good to me," Kin remarked as she was picking underneath her fingernails with a senbon needle…until she pricked herself. She shook it and placed the digit into her mouth to stop the blood with her saliva. She vowed to not do that again.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Naruto's Mindscape, 1:45 am)

Naruto was feeling very sore all over his body as he ran to meet up with his flesh-bound prisoner while trying to bat off the damnable snake with his clones. Unfortunately, they were failing horribly to ward off the one-track mind of a serpentine influence.

"**Dammit Naruto, have you not the slightest idea of what you have done!?"** the beast roared. He really did not like the situation at the current moment. To say that he was in fervid ire was a grave understatement. **"This is the detriment for having an unknown augmentation seal added onto a containment seal! The odd number on that seal just placed onto your neck is conflicting with the even numbers of the seal on your gut. Why do you not think with your head for once, you careless whelp!?"**

"Stop goading me already!" the pointy-eared genin shot back while clutching his chest in agony and holding the prison bars. "This is like…a scorching poison to my system…" He wheezed a bit.

Kyuubi held a claw to his muzzle to ponder on what his host had just said. **"Poison, huh? Well, that leaves us with two options, then."**

"And…what are they?" Naruto's eye twitched when the last of his clones dissipated. He was on the verge of sweating bullets, knowing that the evil beast was on its way to the main chamber.

"**It works out like this. I could flush your system with my youki. Unfortunately, too much raw power could potentially kill you (and that means me, as well) or have adverse side effects…"**

"…Well what about the second choice?" The blond jinchuuriki was getting a bit impatient, knowing that he had a snake on his ass…almost literally.

"**I could overpower the mark on your neck, but you may literally lose your head at the nape that way too."**

The blond demon vessel did not want this conversation to draw out longer. His scowl verified that fact.

"Great…even more bad news," Naruto remarked as his eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "I'll do it my way then! **Kage Bunshin no**—"

"**Don't be hasty, gaki! Using your chakra won't help either, and that could speed up the rapid deterioration of your inner coils."**

"Well, what do you think we should do!? I have a snake that's going to eat me whole or melt my consciousness!"

"**In that case, let us test your luck with both. Brace yourself, Naruto. After I finish, I will bestow upon you the details on how to slay this…**_**thing**_** the snake bastard placed on you." **_**'Let's hope this kid's rare fortune holds out…'**_ A blood-red essence radiated from the beast behind the bars and cascaded over the blue-eyed kid.

Immediately, a rush of youki flooded Naruto's system as the poor blond jinchuuriki wailed in pain. The burning sensation was much greater than the last time the fox gave him power. Naruto's body within his mental world began to shake while he stated to cough up blood. The red plasma intermingled with the fluid of the fox's prison cell as he was struggling to breathe. He wheezed and cried blood from his tear ducts, thinking that the head bijuu was insane.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, same time)

"What's going on with Naruto?" Shikamaru asked under his breath. He noticed…red, _visible_ chakra escaping from the unconscious boy's belly and traveled up his body and encased the sizzling, dark manifestation on his neck. His eyes went wide when the unexpected occurred…

XXXXXXXXXX

(Naruto's Mindscape, 2:00 am)

"_**Don't you want this power, Naruto-kun!?**_" the snake bastard's falsified doppelganger yelled as it slithered to Naruto, who was in front of his tenant's cage.

"**This is a one-shot deal, gaki. Do not screw it up this time!"**

The raw power felt a bit numbing to the blond wonder as he stood erect again. He was still in pain, but it was now a dull ache when compared to the Hebi-teme's seal. The beast's youki combined with his subconscious being and a flaring wind poured forth from the blue-eyed wonder. The snake paused in mere horror as it saw the boy rush at an incredible, dead-on pace.

It could feel its power weakening, but it did not know how this mere child overcame its influence.

As Naruto was gliding to the serpent at a breakneck velocity, his right arm held a wild inferno of magenta and purple. The ethereal flame encased his arm and fist as he shot forward, and that was the last thing that the snake-bastard wannabe had ever seen.

Naruto reared back and fired straight into the face of the creepy serpent…

Time stood still and silence echoed throughout the mindscape…until…

"**Youkai no Enkou**!"

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, 2:05 am)

The shougi player was blown back to his teammates from the sudden energy spike out of Naruto's body. Ino and Chouji looked at the wild firestorm pouring forth from the downed blond next to a sizzling Sasuke. Naruto's body was contorting into uncomfortable positions until the mark on his neck was slowly burning away, peeling off in layers.

Team Ten could only hide their faces from the hurtling waves of chakra with their hands and arms while Team Dosu was silently astounded by such a high level of chakra from that unconscious blond kid.

"What's going on!? Ugh!" Ino shouted over the noise of the streaming essence. It did not feel like the killer intent from what they had felt while Naruto was battling. The aura felt…warm and soothing, like a blanket of heat.

"I don't know," Chouji answered. He peered between his hefty arms. "But I know one thing's for sure. That mark on Naruto's neck is fading away."

'_This guy…he's_ so _full of troublesome surprises…'_ Shikamaru thought while the force was dying down and retreating into the blond's stomach. When the force was calm enough for him to look at his blond-haired friend, he noticed that something was a bit…off, like his ears had changed…

XXXXXXXXXX

(Naruto's Mindscape, 2:13 am)

The blond's energy was spent as he was lying prostrate, panting in the murky liquids of the sewer-like dungeon. The last burst of his Phantom Flame-enhanced punch took a staggering number on his body. However, he did it. The effect of the Great Snake was incinerated to a searing crisp before it petered out into dark smog.

"**At least you didn't miss,"** Kyuubi replied before he continued with a grim tone. **"But unfortunately, I have some bad news…"**

"And…what would…that be…?" asked Naruto between pants. He was too tired to complain about the updated bulletin from his ethereal occupant. He was just glad to have removed the bastard's curse mark. He would worry later about the repercussions.

"**Remember what I had mentioned regarding those 'adverse side-effects?'"** The bijuu lord scratched a claw against his muzzle, which was displaying a lopsided grin.

"…Yeah…" Naruto struggled to say. He was wondering if the fox had a dual personality: serious one minute and oddly happy in the next. Or was it that he took glee in seeing how the jinchuuriki suffered?

"**To put it simply, by forcing my chakra into your coils through the seal, they have expanded to accommodate the new flood of energy. What that entails is that your chakra control has just been blasted to hell, on account of having even more chakra circulating into your system. The **_**Youkai no Enkou**_** will be stronger than normal, and your chakra capacity is now greater, but you will have to redo some of the chakra-control exercises again. If you try to mold chakra while performing a jutsu now, it may backfire on you…or get unknown results."**

Naruto could only mutter one word before he passed out in his subconscious realm…

"…Damn…" His face descended into the shallow water surrounding the demon lord's cage. The disturbed water rippled a bit before it resonated.

'_**There was another thing that needed to be mentioned, but what is a demon to do?'**_ He thought as he looked at his charge._** 'I was going to tell him that his ears grew out a bit more, but I'll let the little gaki find out on his own…Hin-hin-hin…'**_ Kyuubi chortled to himself as he lightly shook his head.

For a ten-thousand-year-old spirit, he had seen many things in his vast lifetime; however, never had he seen a neon blond-haired brat with ears that were shaped like his own on a smaller scale that matched the kid's skin pigment. Before the new modification, the boy had looked like one of those…_elves_ that he had come across in another realm several millennia ago when he was on his way to gaining his sixth tail of power. They were eerily creepy, and they used a chakra rip-off called…_magic_…

The bijuu king shook his head from his misadventures with space-time fluxes. He vowed to forget that particular world, for it was a bit too…quiet and peaceful for him. That and he had to not tinker with the continuum on account of what happened way before _that_ incident occurred…

Oh, was the overarching deity royally pissed at him…for two reasons…with the main one being that he caused a calamity by devouring part of the colony of those pointy-eared freaks. It gave him indigestion for about a hundred years, but it was well worth the mouth-watering taste.

He shuddered at the second reason that had the big, bad Kyuubi run away from the ascendant powers' reprimands…

He was having a little fun in experimentation…

However, his "messing around" had lead to breaking the rules…

Regardless, it took a lot of things to unnerve the regal head of youkai, and that dominion shattered his point of tolerance, just like he did to the gaki's chakra control.

Kyuubi did what he needed to do what he had not done in a long time: rest. Overpowering the effects of the snake bastard's mark had taken much out of him as well. He decided to give the kit a few hours to recharge. At least it would be quiet for quite a while.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, 2:35 am)

"Look, Sakura's mark is fading too," Ino pointed out. The mark on the pinkette started to sizzle into black smoke before it faded into the air. Her corporeal trembling came to a stop. Soon afterward, another dark kanji-band burned onto her left wrist. A hollowed-out inyou mark appeared inside the ring around the band of characters.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Sakura's Mindscape, same time)

"Whoa…What are these? They don't look like typical ninja weaponry," Sakura stated as she held the weapons that tore apart the snake freak. She was glancing at the rounded, teardrop-like bladed weapons that were clutched into her hands. Each one looked like a complementary piece to the yin and yang symbol when she put them together.

"**Those are chakrams, Pinky,"** remarked her Inner-Sakura while cleaning up the slimy mess of the snake "corpse." **"Typically, they're throwing weapons, just like your boomerangs, but when you throw them, they neither arc back nor are deflected by wind, unless you have them ricochet during their trajectory. I'll instruct you how to throw them some time later. For now, I'll give you the small details.**

"**You could use them when fighting up close, just like Ino-pig's sensei, Asuma-san and his trench knives (but I wouldn't recommend that), or as a conduit for your chakra. They can be summoned the same way as you summoned those shuriken, which is another seal band on your left wrist. Consider it a memento from the Shadow Universe for progressing in your right as a kunoichi."**

"Wow…Thank you…I don't know what to say…"

"**However…"** Her inner counterpart grabbed Sakura's attention from her newly created chakrams to her. **"This is just **_**one**_** stepping stone, and those chakrams mark your standings as an apprentice to learning more youjutsu. Don't get lax and think that you're the shit, because you're not! Keep that in mind!"** Inner Sakura flashed through a few handseals, opening a dark hole underneath the corpse of the Hebi-teme. The bad influence was sucked into the endless abyss. **"Abayo Hebi-teme…Shannaro!"**

"So what do we do now, Inner Me?" the pinkette asked.

Her Inner Will realized something. **"Oh, you can wake up now. You may be a bit weak, so I'll loan you a bit of my energy to make you at least functional before your ordinary reserves kick back up again."**

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, 2:37 am)

The mind-walking kunoichi noticed that Billboard Brow began to stir from her troubling ordeal. Sakura fluttered open her eyes to look at three puzzled faces.

"Hey," she weakly said before giving them a sheepish smile. She struggled to elevate herself with her elbows.

"Okay, Forehead, spill it!" Ino shouted. "Explain what's on your arm! Are those tattoos? Your parents would kill you, you know that!?"

"Relax, Ino. It's just a seal band. My parents already know about them," Sakura meekly said, waving in a shooing fashion. She took out some bandages from her pouch and began to wrap over the exposed seal bands on her arm. It was a fresh, tender spot, so she had to cover the new band of kanji with the utmost of care.

The platinum-blonde mind-walker looked at her as if she grew a second head. Forehead mentioned her…by _name_…without adding on "pig." No jab from Sakura? Surely the world was ending in the mind of Yamanaka Ino. Lightning strikes, colossal tremors and a humble, pink-haired fan girl all in one day? It was just too much to comprehend.

"Sakura, are you sure that you're not running a fever?" Ino asked in an exasperated, deadpanned tone.

Sakura looked up at a perplexed Ino. "I'm sure. Why do you ask?"

"Oh, nothing." She paused to meekly rub her left arm with her right hand. "Sakura, what was that jutsu that you used a while ago?"

Playing dumb, the pink-haired kunoichi cocked her head to the side, blinked and asked, "What jutsu?"

Ino's eyebrow twitched. "You know damn well what I'm talking about! Now spill it and don't play dumb with me! I want some details…from both you and that idiot Whiskers! I know that you want to get strong so you can have my Sasuke-kun, so I should know what you're hiding up that shoddy dress of yours!"

'_I hope it won't be a catfight. That would be such a bore,'_ Shikamaru thought as he was looking on. _'Troublesome females…'_

Sakura was about to open her mouth, but a raindrop pelted her nose and a peal of thunder boomed from above. Before the rain became a torrential downpour, Squad Ten huddled inside the hollowed-out tree and Sakura picked up Dosha-chan to place beside his master. It was fortunate that both squads made it inside the tree base before the floodgates of the sky opened.

"Listen Ino, I don't have to explain what I did," Sakura softly stated as she finished covering her arms. "And if you want to ask about _Naruto_, then ask him by yourself. That is, when he comes to…along with Sasuke-kun…" Her voice tapered off. She was worried.

She glanced from Naruto to Sasuke-kun, who was oozing a dark violet hue, and then back to Naruto. She continued to address Ino as she fumbled through her supplies. "I wanted to get stronger, because I've always been behind these two, and not improving upon my skills. I never took the role of kunoichi seriously. I was a hopeless case, lost in the fantasies of love and romance, waiting for a knight in shining armor to sweep me off my feet.

"It was not until our mission to Nami no Kuni that made me realize the fact that ninja life isn't all fun and games. On the ferry back home, I didn't know that I had clan members abroad, much less having jutsu in their name. I vowed to train hard for the sake of my team, as well as to change myself for the better and make a name in my own regard. I owe these guys my life, especially the blond knucklehead who found the scrolls in the first place." She pointed her thumb to Naruto, who was resting peacefully. For some odd reason, he emanated a type of strange warmth, but it felt comfortable.

She chuckled inwardly. _'It looks like we have our own natural heating system. Naruto, you're still an unpredictable ninja…'_

'_**But seriously, I'm gonna strangle that kid when he wakes up…Shannaro!'**_ Inner Sakura was itching with anticipation. Sakura could have sworn that she heard cracking knuckles echoing in her mindscape.

Ino sat quietly, absorbing her former friend's rationale. Forehead showed care and compassion for both of her squad mates, instead of typically showering one with her favoritism. When push came to shove, she was quick to bash whoever said something idiotic…Well…clobbering Whiskers had always been a favorite pastime. It was a surprisingly welcomed change, to say the least.

It also made her reevaluate some of the choices that she had made. She declared to herself to check out the family scroll that she had stashed away before she left. Sure, it was illegal to take it out of the Yamanaka household, but she would have to quickly look over it to find any offensive jutsu that could counter some of Sakura's mysterious moves if she were to go against her in a fight. It could work in theory but potentially backfire against her in a test run.

In Ino's retrospect, it would have been humiliating to get thrown for a loop and trounced by a personal contender that had little to no talent. Now, Ino had to think otherwise. She could not make heads or tails on Sakura's growth, and that made her wary of the pinkette. Either way, she vowed to never lose to her…in skills or in love.

Chouji munched away at his chips, stealing glances to make sure Naruto's fox was safe and sound. He was a bit amazed with Sakura's speech and her changing attitude. Who knew she had it in her? Maybe he should adopt that kind of courage, instead of playing the gentle coward most of the time.

Shikamaru was leaning back, dozing off, taking in the pink-haired girl's discourse. He thought that if only Ino could follow suit with Sakura, then the world would be in perfect order.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, 5:45 am)

Hearing the constant pitter-patter of rainwater onto bark, Naruto groggily yawned as he stretched out his arms. His moment of relief was short-lived when a soft hand grabbed his wrist. His eyes opened in a fast reaction. His cerulean orbs panned around the group to land on a set of green, pupil-less ones. It was Ino.

"Alright, Whiskers, I want some particulars!" Ino shouted at point-blank range. "How is it that you, the 'dead-last,' can use _Mokuton_!? What about those ice-like blades!? And what was that strange, red glow that came from you a while ago!?"

Naruto retrieved his arm from his fellow blonde. His deep-blue eyes narrowed into a stony glare, which made the ringmaster of gossip shy away and halt her tirade. Those slit pupils made him look like an animal waiting to pounce.

"That's none of your damn business, and keep it down," he calmly stated. "What I have in my arsenal of jutsu is none of your concern. It was just a fluke, and nothing more. And what you have seen here occurred by chance. I'm not sure if I could ever do it again for that matter." He closed his eyes and nodded sagely. When he bobbed his skull, he felt a larger than average pressure on the sides of his head. He could not pinpoint it exactly, but he felt as though his ears had changed.

Shikamaru's eyes were half-lidded. That was the lousiest form of logic from the blond wonder that was his friend. He knew for a discerning fact that Naruto could, in fact, use the Shodai Hokage's life-giving powers.

Why deny it? Maybe it was due to the fact that Hokage-sama banned Naruto from using it, but he used it anyway when they faced off against the elite Orochimaru. There were too many troublesome variables to consider. Either way, he kept his mouth shut on the issue.

Chouji paid no mind. He was still munching his way through yet another bag of chips. Just how many of those snacks _did_ he carry with him? The world may never know…

"That reminds me…" Sakura began with a gentle smile. Immediately afterward, she decked her conscious teammate across the face with a hard, right hook. The sickening blow could be felt all around from Ino to even the unaware Chouji. They noticed that Sakura's facial tone transformed from serenity to unbridled fury, and that made them flinch and perspire bullets of sweat from their foreheads. It felt exaggeratingly _worse_ than what Naruto had exuded.

"You are one…dumb…_baka_!" Sakura cried out with fists balled up.

Sakura stood up and walked out, into the rain, over to the heap that was Naruto, with gritting teeth. She picked up the fox-eared boy by the collar of his jumper with both of her hands and pressed his face onto hers. "Naruto, what the hell were you thinking?" she whispered between her teeth, out of Team Ten's earshot. "Why did you reveal your wood-using abilities? I thought that you were forbidden to use them."

"I…"

"And don't tell me that you pulled a 'monkey see, monkey do' moment with that ANBU in the tiger mask either," she said, not giving Naruto a word in edgewise.

"Let me…"

"I don't have all day, Naruto." Sakura scowled and narrowed her emerald eyes. The piercing gaze itself could have easily cut through jade.

"Let me at least start, Sakura," Naruto managed to say. "It was an accident." He chuckled nervously while holding up his right hand as if he were about to take an oath. "Shinobi's honor."

The ki receded a tad when she released him from the nose-to-nose contact. "You're off the hook…for now." _'Those ears look a lot more vulpine than before…they almost look like Dosha-chan's…'_ she thought to herself as she examined Naruto's new change.

'_Well, that went over well…'_ Naruto thought.

"What if Hokage-sama catches wind of this, huh?" Sakura asked with hands on her hips. Her facial expression was unreadable.

"…Kuso…" Naruto cursed under his breath with his head down. _'I'm going to be in deep…trouble…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, 5:50 am)

"Time to begin the operation," Dosu commented and patted away the booby-trapped squirrel, directing it to the two teams. He was chuckling due to the force that small girl placed into that punch. Maybe things would get interesting after all…

XXXXXXXXXX

"It feels like this rain won't let up any time soon," Naruto declared as he massaged his chin and checked on his furry, sleeping companion. As he was drying off his hair, his foxy ears twitched and heard a faint rustling in the bushes. He, along with those that were awake, turned to the direction that he was facing. A furry creature with a bushy tail and a rodent-like face appeared. The quintet of Konoha shinobi sighed a breath of relief, knowing that it was not a major threat.

'_...Just a squirrel,'_ were the thoughts of Sakura, Naruto and Team Ten. The woodland rodent raced to the makeshift campsite but paused when Chouji's kunai was hurled in its tracks. The poor critter was scared out of its wits when it dashed off to parts unknown.

'_That was a close one…'_ Chouji thought. _'I think I should tell them about the traps before we head out.'_

"Okay, we need to get going, guys. I'm sure that they can manage for now," Ino told the other two on her squad. Shikamaru nodded in silence, but he felt as if they were being watched this entire time. The blonde kunoichi picked up the mental distress coming from her teammate. Ino then turned to Sakura and whispered into her ears, "We got your backs if you need us. We'll be off to the side if there's any trouble, okay? And remember this: I won't lose to you."

The pinkette smiled at her once-time friend. Hopefully, they could still hold onto that bond…before the fissure, one Uchiha Sasuke, had split it completely. "We got it. Don't worry Ino." She placed a hand onto Ino's shoulder. "We'll get through this. Trust me." The unspoken feeling was this: _I'll see you at the end…no ifs, ands or buts about it._

XXXXXXXXXX

Ino slipped Sakura a slip of paper regarding Chouji's set of traps before they left. She was amazed by the creativity. If she did not know any better, she would have expected Naruto to set up something of this caliber. She guessed that Naruto's antics rubbed off on his friends while in the Academy. One trap was to be used as a feint while the other one was an even bigger surprise.

"Did they see the exploding tag on that squirrel?" Zaku asked while still crouching. He really needed to stretch, because a person could only squat but for so long.

"I don't think so," Dosu answered tonelessly. "We'll find out when we get up close…" He tapped the porous, metal contraption on his right arm.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, parts unknown, 5:55 am)

Lee broke away from Tenten and Neji to find more teams with scrolls. He wondered if Sakura was alright and would pull through with her teammates. As he passed through a tree filled with foliage, twenty leaves were pulled off and fluttered in mid-air. It was time for another self-imposed training routine by the second Green Beast of Konoha.

"Yoshi…If I grab these twenty leaves, then it will be certain that Sakura-san will be okay," he declared in his own self-challenge. "If I fail to grab the last one, then I will do everything in my power to protect her. If I fail that, then I will do one thousand squats due to unrequited feelings!" _'I hope that she does not make fun of my eyebrows…like last time…'_ Lee inwardly thought with a pouting lip. Sakura called him "unique" when he attempted to make a pass at her the first time that they were training. She was not so quick to apologize, and that stung the ego of the "Beautiful Green Beast." Eventually, she finally reconciled and said that he was an "okay" guy. That comment made his heart soar to the skies above.

He performed a springboard from the branch and began to grab like a madman. He was about to grab the last leaf when an upturned squirrel on its back caught his eye. It appeared as if it were struggling with something on its hide.

Lee flipped down on his haunches and caught sight of the explosive note latched onto the backside of the helpless rodent. It was activated, and it was sizzling out to the last few seconds. He quickly snatched it off and crumpled it, defusing it altogether.

'_Whew…that was close…'_ he pondered. _'Now who would be so cruel to do something like this?'_

The second-leading taijutsu expert of Konoha sensed that trouble was brewing within the storm overhead…

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, 6:00 am)

"So, it looks like a change of guard, I see…"

The creepy voice alerted Sakura and Naruto to stand in a defensive position, kunai at the ready.

It was the team leader with one eye visible that had spoken. "But it's no longer necessary. Wake up Sasuke-kun. We want to fight him."

The other dark-haired shinobi was crouched on top of a low branch while the kunoichi stood to the leader's left.

"Those guys," Naruto muttered under his breath. "They're from the newly formed Otogakure. They're the ones from the exam that jumped that guy, Kabuto…" Naruto's eyes widened as he missed a particular detail before their bout with the Hebi-teme…

_The outline of a tuft of grass engraved on Orochimaru's hitai-ate was a cleverly disguised illusion. When the pale-faced freak ripped off his ersatz face, the genjutsu dropped, and the tuft of grass reverted to a musical note._

Sakura had a flash of realization cross her mind as well. She was thinking along the lines of the same thing. "What are you talking about!?" she asked with an elevated voice. "I know that snake-freak, Orochimaru, is pulling the strings from the shadows! What is his purpose!?"

Dosu, Zaku and Kin's eyes widened after the pink-haired girl mentioned _their_ leader. What was _he_ doing within the Forest of Death? Did they find out that they were sent to inspect their downed teammate while they were out of action?

"Why did he mark us?" Naruto coolly asked. "That's what I want to find out." Team Dosu twitched again when Naruto rolled his left shoulder. The spot where the seal had been placed felt awfully sensitive. "Surely you must know."

The Sound team was even more astounded that their leader did not tell them about marking _all three_, but with what? He was originally going to pay a visit to the last Uchiha. Why the sudden change of plans?

'_They must have…intrigued Orochimaru-sama in some form or fashion. Now what is he planning?'_ Dosu thought as his head tilted gawkily. "Hmm…I wonder what that man is thinking half the time."

Naruto and Sakura were taken aback. Even his squad of genin had been in the dark about his cryptic plans. Naruto, in a way, knew from his tenant that he wanted the Sharingan, but he also could have wanted Sakura's body, as well as his own, so he could take their jutsu for his own selfish ambition.

Sakura was in the gray area of know-how. She only knew that Orochimaru was the leading strategist behind the scenes. So that would mean, to an extent, that the three Oto-nin standing before them would be pawns on the shougi board.

"But hearing that, we can't let you go," Zaku spoke up with a haughty air in his voice. He sneered. "I'll kill the girl, maim the fox-eared squirt, and go after this Sasuke guy, myself."

'_Fox-eared…?'_ Naruto thought as he rubbed the side of his face. He grazed past his ears and rubbed on them. His eyes expressed his sudden shock. _'That bastard fox…If I had the chance to, I'd throttle him for screwing with my body!'_

'**I told you about the side effects when I flushed your system **_**and**_** burned off the seal. Deal with it, you ungrateful gaki,'** Kyuubi retorted as he stirred from his slumber. **'I should be the one to devour you for even putting yourself in that kind of predicament. Hn…prideful humans and your warped sense of logic. That is why you got vulpine ears.'** He let loose a pent-up, raging bellow before he calmed down again. He would never understand the hubris of _Homo sapiens_.

"Hold on, Zaku," Dosu said. He walked over a few feet. "Whoever set this trap wasn't very good." The one-eyed shinobi in wrappings picked up a patch of artificial turf. "This was a recently overturned stone. There's different coloration in dirt, as well as texture, and the grass doesn't grow here." He looked up to meet the eyes of Sakura and Naruto. "A booby trap is pointless unless it goes unnoticed."

Zaku scoffed and slapped his knee. "How lame! And to think…That kunai was used to just stop the squirrel from setting off the trap."

'_Orochimaru-sama instructed us to get to Sasuke-kun,'_ Dosu thought. _'It would have been easier if they were still down. I guess we have no other choice…'_ "Kill them," he said after debating with himself.

Kin and Zaku jumped along with their team leader.

While in midair, Sakura smirked and sliced an invisible wire held down by another kunai. The trap revealed a heavy, hollow log tied tightly with rope, almost like a pendulum. It was barreling down toward the ninja in the air.

"A giant log trap above? Oh no!" Dosu retorted as if he were intimidated. He held his Melody Arm to part of the log and made a single handseal, initiating his **Kyoumeisen**. The rush of sound waves broke apart the log into splinters and wayward bark.

Naruto took note of the influx of wind needed to force open the log. He would think about making a jutsu like that for much later.

"This is the end for you weaklings. You should've worked harder," Dosu remarked. As they were coming down, Naruto was flashing through handseals for a Great Breakthrough when he heard a shout from out of nowhere…

"**KONOHA SENPUU!**"

A green blur emerged from the trees and lashed out three times, sending back the pouncing team.

"Then you guys…should work _even_ harder…" Lee's shiny-bowl haircut blew into the wind. His face was fixed in determination as he struck a dramatic pose with the squirrel on his shoulder.

"Who are you?" Dosu asked as he shook off the pain.

"I am the Beautiful Green Beast of the Hidden Leaf…My name is Rock Lee!"

"Lee-san, why are you here?" Sakura asked with an astounded look on her face. She would have never expected her part-time tutor to show up.

"It was thanks to this little one here," Lee calmly said as he let down the furry rodent. "Now go." He patted the squirrel on its backside. It scampered off into parts unknown yet again.

"All right, Bushy-Brows!" Naruto shouted. "Now we can take them on!" He cracked his knuckles while grinning. "I've been waiting to scrap as a tag team!"

'**A forewarning about your chakra control, Naruto,'** Kyuubi commented, going into sensei-subordinate mode. **'You're free to use water and wind-based jutsu. Earth and ice require a lot more control, much of which you don't have for the moment. The same goes for your "precluded" wood-element.'**

'_Damn,'_ Naruto mentally swore.

'**You know good and well that you were barred from using Mokuton in the first place, gaki, so I don't want to hear your futile griping,'** the bijuu lord deadpanned.

'_Well, can you alter the seal again?'_ he pleaded.

'**No can do, young one. That was a one-time effort. I wished that I could…but I cannot.'** Kyuubi held a paw to his muzzle to assume his bored, thinking pose. Naruto swore that his tenant went through more mood changes than Sakura on a _good_ day.

He turned to said pink-haired teammate. "Well Sakura, it seems that I've got only two realms of ninjutsu to work with. Are you up for a challenge?"

Sakura was confused. "Huh? What? How did that happen?"

"The seal…I managed to overpower it…but at a price." Naruto did not need to expound upon the rest of the explanation. Sakura got the hint.

Case in point: _It screwed with his chakra control…Big time!_

'_His control is almost back to Square One, which was fresh out of the Academy,'_ Sakura grimly thought.

"Well, I'm a bit too weak to move right now, so other than some taijutsu, I'm only able to use **Kawarimi** and a few of my lesser illusions," she quietly said to her teammate. "Lee-san, other than Team Ten on standby, is the only fresh one out of us that are still standing."

'_Okay,'_ Naruto thought to himself before he got ready to brawl. _'Sasuke-teme and Dosha-chan are out of commission, so that leaves Lee and Chouji in taijutsu, Ino with her mind-entering skills, Shikamaru with his shadow-slinging, Sakura with genjutsu and me with Kage Bunshin, as well as Fuuton and Suiton jutsu…And I don't know what else these guys—and girl—are packing, other than sound-based ninjutsu. We have them outnumbered, but I'm not certain if they outclass us.'_

'_They're like cockroaches,'_ Dosu thought to himself. "Oh well…" He pulled out his Earth scroll and tossed it behind. The vital parchment landed in Zaku's open palm where he subsequently placed it in his hip pouch. "Zaku, you can have Sasuke-kun. Kin and I will take them on."

Dosu looked around at his…potential prey and deduced on the known and unknown. _'The thick-browed kid has some impressive taijutsu. The girl and the fox-eared kid are enigmas. We know nothing about their talents.'_ He smiled underneath his bandages. _'This ought to be fun…'_

Dosu dashed to the group of three. As he was rapidly approaching, Sakura launched a kunai from her holster, but Dosu jumped into the air, letting the kunai ingrain itself into the ground near Zaku.

Zaku could have sworn that he heard fizzling and looked down to see an explosive note wrapped around its small hilt. His eyes widened greatly and jumped to a higher branch before the tag detonated with Sakura's handseal.

Lee, in the meantime, punched into the earth and pulled out a giant root to intercept Dosu's blow. The upturned root gave way from the impact while Sakura and Naruto shielded their eyes from potential splinters. They were expecting Lee to pull off…or out…something like that. Kin was a bit stunned, but Zaku just snorted in disinterest, like it was no big deal.

"There is a trick to your jutsu, right?" Lee queried. "I am not going to just simply dodge it, since I have seen them before when you were showing off." He paused to think on the variables as well. _'It is a good thing that Naruto-kun and Sakura-san are okay. I can hold back on my power for now and try something new.'_

"Yeah, what he said," a voice came from behind Dosu. He turned around to catch a ninja sandal in his hand. He glanced down to where the blond kid was standing.

'_He made a _shadow_ clone…but when did that happen?'_ he thought as he heaved Naruto's clone against the tree where Zaku was perched. The clone made impact and dispelled in smoke as Dosu descended to the earth.

'_Good thing I made that clone while they were swept away by Lee's initial strike…'_ Naruto thought. _'I wondered how that Oto creep would follow up…'_

He had then noticed Lee unwrap his bandages. Naruto's eyes bugged out. "Lee-san! You can't be using that now, are you!? Are you insane!?"

"I should be asking you the same thing," Sakura retorted under her breath while rolling her eyes. _'You used Mokuton in front of a guy who craves for jutsu!'_ Then it clicked in her head. The snake-faced creep wanted her body. For what, she did not know, but she shuddered at that thought.

"No, it is not," Lee replied. "It is something that does not place much strain on the muscles while assuming the Strong Fist. For this jutsu, I would like to thank you, Naruto-kun…"

Naruto had a curious look on his face when Lee disappeared and sent Dosu into the air again with a quick foot strike to his chin.

'_Well, I see nothing original yet…a __**Konoha Shoufuu**__ right before the __**Kage Buyou**__…'_ Naruto dissected. Something caught his attention, as well as Sakura's gaze. It was a bit different in the follow-up. Lee appeared…beside the Oto-nin, instead of underneath. "What the hell…?"

Lee grinned as if he was a kid in the candy store when he looked Dosu in the face. "Meet one of my new jutsu, **Shinkirou Buyou**. I must admit that you should feel honored for me to test out this other jutsu on you." Lee wrapped around, underneath the airborne shinobi, while his wrist wrappings became undone. As Lee's wrist dressings unfurled and began to wrap around Dosu, they started to resemble a blossoming white lotus. The bandages constricted the Sound ninja's arms and legs and clamped them together. From Sakura and Naruto's points-of-view, Lee looked like a flying bird with his arms spread, while the Oto-nin was close to being tethered down to his back. Kin and Zaku had a hint of worry on their faces.

Dosu was mildly panicking. His body was bound and he could do nothing about it.

"Behold!" Lee shouted. "**Byakuren Kyoufuu**!"

Lee began to spin faster and faster, while Dosu began to get a bit dizzy from the centrifugal force. The two were plummeting toward the ground when Lee loosened the bandages as he kicked off Dosu and hopped on a nearby tree branch. From the release, Dosu was falling down at a phenomenal rate.

'_This is bad…I need to cushion the fall!'_ Zaku yelled inwardly while flashing through a few handseals.

Naruto noticed it and flashed through his own. "I don't think so, you Sound bastard!" Naruto landed on the Tatsu seal, but it felt…different than what a normal Great Breakthrough should feel like. Instead, the wind from the jutsu blew erratically and wildly, blowing everyone away and sent Naruto skyrocketing upward in a spiraling fashion. He screamed at the top of his lungs as he flew eastward, along with Zaku. Lee and Dosu were scattered close by while Sakura and Kin were blown northward.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Team Ten, 7:38 am)

Ino shook her head. "That Naruto," she muttered. She then inwardly groaned. _'I didn't get enough beauty sleep thanks to them…'_

"It's obvious that the jutsu failed," Chouji mentioned while holding out some chips for Shikamaru to eat. He respectfully declined the offer with a firm hand. _'And boy, Naruto got air…'_

"It not only failed, but it completely backfired on him," the lazy genius remarked as he was looking at the skyward shinobi. "It's almost as if he lost his excellent chakra control from earlier before." He sighed. "It looks like about that time, isn't it Ino?" _'Back to lookout duty…And I hardly got a wink of sleep with all this ruckus going on…I swear, this entire night has been too ridiculously troublesome…'_ Shikamaru thought with sagging eyes.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Sakura, 7:40 am)

Sakura latched onto a branch and pulled herself up, only to be grabbed by her pink locks. It was the Oto kunoichi that was blown along the same flight.

Kin looked at Sakura with disgust. "Your hair has more luster and gloss in it. Hn…Trying to be a sexy ninja, huh?" She turned her nose up at the pink-haired girl. "If you have time to fix your hair, then train, you swine!"

Sakura chuckled. Her chuckle then became a full-blown, hardy cackle.

Kin narrowed her eyes. "What's so funny, you piece of trash?" _'This bitch is going hysterical!'_

"I'm sorry," Sakura said while wiping away a tear. "But a lady can look pretty and still train, too. You don't know how far I've come before I decided to take this exam." She pulled out a kunai from her pouch and held it firmly in the palm of her hand.

"A kunai?" Kin snorted. "That won't work on me, you pink-haired twit."

The evil grin from Sakura did not go unnoticed. "Who said it was for you?"

"What…?" Kin was shocked when the pink-haired girl sliced straight through her hair and wheeled around with a sweep kick to knock the Oto kunoichi off balance. Kin righted herself as she regained balance.

"Now it's time to get serious!" Sakura shouted with gusto as she leapt back to an opposing branch. _'I wished that you were here to see me in action, boys…Naruto, Lee-san, stay safe.'_

Kin assessed her opponent by analysis. _'I should stay on my guard with this one. Her looks fooled me, and hardly anything gets past me.'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Naruto, same time)

Naruto finally descended to land in the upper canopy where a confused-looking Zaku was perched.

"You know," Naruto said as he pulled himself onto a thick limb. "If it weren't for that goofy look on your face, then I wouldn't have taken you as a threat and use my…failed attempt at a jutsu." He mumbled that last part.

"Hn," Zaku snorted. "You shouldn't take me lightly, you Leaf cockroach!" Zaku raised his right hand and aimed at the blond while his left hand made a half-handseal. "Air pressure, one hundred percent, sound pressure, zero percent blast…**Zankuuha**!"

From the open hole in his hand, a coherent blast of wind shot out to where Naruto was gathering his bearings. The force of the jutsu pressed into Naruto's gut, leaving the jinchuuriki a bit winded as he soared back. It must have been his fortieth tree that he smashed into during the selection examinations.

"With these holes integrated into my arms, I can freely control sonic sound waves and air pressure. I have the power to even destroy a rock."

"You don't have to brag about your abilities, you blowhard!" Naruto shouted as he righted himself on another branch, panting to take in breaths. He clutched the point of impact with his left hand. _'But damn…that _was_ painful…'_

"If I used both hands, then you would've lost your gut in that last jutsu," Zaku retorted. "Face it kid, you're in the big leagues now. There's no way that you can beat me."

"Don't get so cocky, Oto-teme!" Naruto roared. "Never anticipate victory while I'm around…**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**!"

With the cross-shaped handseal, four Naruto duplicates popped into existence. The smoke gave the blond wonder a chance to plan out his next move against the arrogant Sound-nin. The guy was focusing on wind, so why should he not as well?

Within the smoke, he attempted to focus on molding his chakra by holding the Hitsuji handseal, but to Naruto, it felt like trying to hold back a tidal wave with one's own bare hands. He tilted his hand forward and hoped that he would not miss.

The chakra fluctuation was not lost on Zaku. He was wondering what that blond shrimp was trying to accomplish. His smirk faded when he saw a wall of blue essence emerging rapidly from the smoke. It looked like a copycat version of his Decapitating Air Wave but with pure chakra.

He effortlessly dodged the attack by jumping up to a higher branch. However, he had three copies of the fox-eared kid following after him.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Sasuke's mindscape, same time)

Sasuke and his former self were a little worse for wear, but no matter how many times the subliminal messaging echoed in his mind, he would not give into the dark force. He was amazed at how his willpower had withstood this entire time, even though his mental self was cut up and breathing hard by attempting to beat it back. Even though his mind was holding strong, he felt more and more bloodthirsty with every punch and kick dealt to the seal's embodiment…

Little did he know that the snake had been transferring a bit of its energy into the dark-haired avenger while they had gone toe-to-tail. Sasuke remained somewhat unaffected for now, but it would all come full circle and he would eventually fall prey to Orochimaru's influence. That was what the serpentine image concluded.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Lee, same time)

With faster-than-average reflexes, Lee grabbed onto a branch not too far away from the unofficial campsite of Teams Seven and Ten. Dosu was lucky enough to be indented into a nearby tree instead of the ground from that thick-browed weirdo's jutsu. He would have to analyze and keep a close watch on that kid.

"You've had your fun, but now it's my turn," Dosu remarked with a grin hidden beneath the mummified wrappings. He pulled up his oversized sleeve and dashed up to the tree where Lee was hanging.

Lee took note of it and swung up to another branch when the tree limb was demolished. He caught some of the reverberations of the blow and that left him feeling a little woozy, almost like an inebriated feeling. Had Lee stood at close range, he would have felt the full effect of the punch.

"I take it that you've noticed. There _is_ a little trick, just like you mentioned," Dosu remarked. "You can't just dodge against my attacks." He chuckled more to himself. "It's sound. Even if you dodge my fist, sound will attack you.

"When you hear sound that means your ear is catching the vibrations in the air. If you were any closer, it would have damaged your inner ear membrane, which is the part responsible for your balance and equilibrium. Your pathetic taijutsu won't work against me."

Lee had to take extra special care with handling a ninja capable of ninjutsu. Lee could barely mold chakra, but he was capable enough to transfer part of his low reserves into his limbs to amplify the power behind them. Being unable to use ninjutsu or genjutsu put the green-clad "splendid ninja" at a major disadvantage.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Team Gai, minus Lee, same time)

"Lee sure is late. He should be here by now," Tenten deduced to her white-eyed teammate. "Do you think that he could be in a fight with an enemy?" _'Or worse…?'_ she grimly thought to herself.

"No way…" Neji coolly remarked. "Well, that is unlikely." He turned a bit in the direction where he heard something. "Let's go find Lee."

"…Right," Tenten said after a bit of hesitation. Both of them jumped and ran at blinding speeds on par with their green-clad teammate.

XXXXXXXXXX

The royal rumble of the forest lasted for quite a while. Things were coming to a head for Naruto, Sakura and Lee…

XXXXXXXXXX

(Naruto, 10:00 am)

It was hard for Naruto to focus on which of the elements he wanted to select. It was like having them placed on a roulette wheel; it was random from the spin that was a handseal. He would have to work extremely hard to alternate between his chakra natures as if it were second nature with little to no conscious thought.

He was panting hard from dodging Zaku's air-based assaults when he was flashing through some handseals to block the next oncoming wave hurtling toward him.

Naruto landed on the Inu seal.

"**Suiton: Suijinheki**!" he shouted. He reared back to take in the water chakra filling his mouth. He hoped that it would form a wall to refract the sound wave. Water gushed forth, but it did not form a solid wall in front of the blond wonder. Instead, the water pouring forth from Naruto's mouth came out as a swirling current that bypassed the air wave and slammed into Zaku's gut. The force behind that strange jutsu had driven him back to the campsite where Naruto followed suit.

As he was approaching the flying Oto-nin, he thought to himself that he should put a name to the failed jutsu. In the eyes of Uzumaki Naruto, a failed jutsu that came about as a success was declared an inventive original.

He also pondered if he could have used his Water Absorption to procure a comparable effect to the Water Encampment Wall.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Sakura, same time)

Even though the pink-haired kunoichi learned a bit of taijutsu from the Green Beast Duo, Sakura stood little to no chance in close-combat situations, particularly with the Sound kunoichi in front of her. She did not want to exhaust almost all of her chakra by bringing out her Inner Will.

Frankly, she lacked the chakra quantity because she was not at one hundred percent going into the fight. She added that to the fact that opening one-quarter of the Eight Inner Gates would put tremendous strain on her already worn-out muscles.

She tried to the best of her natural ability (along with chakra-fortified blows) to match up to the Sound kunoichi, but the girl was a bit faster with her follow-throughs, leaving Sakura on the defensive most of the time.

Kin tried to set up for one of her illusions, but the pink-haired twit deflected her senbon with some of her kunai. She was a pest, for lack of a better term.

"I have to admit that you're not so worthless after all," Kin commented as she took an unfamiliar stance in the trees.

Sakura said nothing, but she did bite down on her left thumb to let the blood flow. She used the kunai in the same hand to slice through the wrapping on her right wrist. She smeared the blood onto the seal-band twice. With a pop and a poof of smoke, two of her crimson, four-sided boomerangs appeared from out of nowhere.

Kin narrowed her eyes. "What kind of weapons are those?" she asked.

"They're the throwing kind," Sakura answered with her head down. _'I just hope this works…'_ she thought as she looked up and flung them one at a time.

Kin easily dodged the projectiles. The edges on those strange weapons were blunt, so how could she be serious enough to just conk her on the head without killing her? And what was with that grin etched on that twit's face?

She noticed that the pinkette had her hands in a strange handseal. It looked like the Tora handseal, but the forefingers were wrapped around her middle fingers.

'_What the…?'_ Kin could not get out that thought when she felt miniature claws slash into her back. She visibly winced from the pain. When she grabbed at her back, she felt two small tufts of "fur." Kin turned around on the branch and Sakura grinned by seeing a pair of crimson-hued tigress constructs latched onto her.

"You're wondering how, right?" Sakura asked. "I intended for my boomerangs to soar past you. I placed a bit of my chakra into those to transform them into…something different. They whirled around by my command and silently latched onto you. This is one of the high-level youjutsu from Kusagakure that requires close to faultless chakra control. You should be lucky enough that you were the first to witness my **Youjutsu Magen: Oniyuri no Doki**."

Kin growled. "You little twit, you're going to pay for that!" She jumped to tackle Sakura back to the temporary base, with the illusionary "tigers" still affixed to her back.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Lee, same time)

Lee was feeling the effects of the Vibrating Sound Drill. The dizziness from the jutsu left him nauseous and off-balance. Dosu simply kicked the green-clad taijutsu freak to the tree where Team Ten was watching over a now awakened (and frightened) Doshaburi and a still-downed Sasuke.

Shikamaru, Chouji and Ino looked on at Lee, who was flying through the foliage back to where they were positioned. He was in terrible shape as he plummeted to the ground, where Chouji made the dive to catch him.

Ino looked around and heard multitudes of snapping branches. "Incoming!" she shouted at the top of her lungs.

XXXXXXXXXX

From the myriad of trees, three bodies impacted the earth while a fourth and fifth hopped down from their run through the forest to catch up with their respective adversaries.

Kin and Sakura were tussling with one another by rolling on the ground and pulling on each other's hair. They were close to out of chakra, so their brawl devolved into a hair-pulling catfight.

Zaku was clutching his chest. The force behind that drilling torrent was phenomenal. He knew that the fox-eared twerp had a lot of chakra on account of that red flare from earlier in the morning, but he did not take into account into _how much_ he possessed.

Dosu looked a bit haggard and Naruto looked a bit winded from pursuing his soaring opponent. Aside from his chakra control issue, Naruto was otherwise fine, save for a cut here and there, along with a little bit of dirt and grime. The cuts were slightly hissing on account of the regenerative abilities from Kyuubi-sama.

"All of these Leaf cockroaches just keep on appearing," Dosu said. "You're starting to bug me."

"Don't you get it?" Zaku asked between breaths as he staggered to his feet. "We're only here for this Sasuke guy, and nothing is going to stop us. I don't see why all of you are going out of your way just to protect one person…"

"Hn…It looks like you pieces of trash are getting dealt with by these low-life, second-rate ninja…"

Everyone turned to look at the new arrivals perched on a high branch. It was none other than Lee's two teammates, Tenten, with a concerned look on her tanned face, and Hyuuga Neji, with a cold, withering glare at the scene before him.

"You made a grave mistake by picking the wrong one to mess with," Neji remarked with a frown and pointed at an unconscious Lee. "That knocked-out weirdo is from our team, and…" The veins around his eyes bulged to unreal proportions as the chakra channeled into his eyes, activating his intimidating Byakugan. "You're going to pay for that!"

From Neji's doujutsu activation, it slightly frightened those who have not witnessed the stare from the White Evil Eye.

'_What's this?'_ Dosu remarked to himself. He was alarmed. _'It's like his eyes see through everything…'_

"It appears that you are far outnumbered for the moment…" Neji paused when he noticed a dark aura around the vicinity. What was that kind of chakra? "…In fact, I don't have to worry about stepping in."

Dosu sneered. "Quit acting smug and face me here and now."

Neji still held that confident smirk as he released the chakra from his eyes and closed them.

"I believe that would be unnecessary," the Hyuuga prodigy responded with a fixed grin that screamed arrogance. "Besides, I wouldn't want to get my hands dirty."

All parties that were in attendance felt a tremendous spike of energy and turned toward the source…

"Sasuke-kun, you're awake…" Sakura's voice tapered off as she released a stunned Kin from her clutches. With her focus lost, her boomerangs reverted back to normal. Something was amiss with her dark-haired crush….

Shikamaru's eyes went unnaturally wide when he looked at what he had seen…

Chouji dropped his bag of chips to take in the sight of the arising shinobi…

Ino was stunned to the core as well. _'Is that…Sasuke-kun…?'_

Naruto did not know what to think….

Time stood still in the brink of the silence, save for the dark, whirling tendrils of rampant energy. The dark-haired avenger spoke to break the stillness as he opened his eyes…

"Naruto…Sakura…Who did that to you?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N**: Well, there is another end to another chapter. I decided to make you wait in anticipation from the high of the fight in the Forest of Death. And once again, another cliffhanger! Do not expect an update of this caliber for quite some time.

I altered Sasuke's mindscape a bit, if you could tell already, as well as trying to make the mindscape conflicts much more interesting. I decided to do this change for your enjoyment.

To those people who are kind of fuzzy on how Naruto's ears look like, picture the character Jak from the PlayStation2 games of Jak and Daxter. The only difference is that Naruto's ears are half that size.

I adjusted the ANBU masks, if you can tell (or pay close attention to details), making them somewhat correlative to the Chinese zodiac. Think of them as dwarf caricatures on the porcelain. There will be other animal masks though, so need not worry.

THIS IS A SPOILER WARNING FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NOT READ THE MANGA. The Shodai Hokage's name was revealed from Chapter 398 as Senju Hashirama, and will remain that way throughout the fic when he is referenced.

Yes, I made Kyuubi an adventurer that got into a _lot_ of trouble prior to the events in this fic. Not happy about it? Tough cookies! Tricksters are devious troublemakers.

The second reason that Kyuubi mentioned will remain undisclosed at this current time and will be touched upon later.

_Sakura, Lee and Naruto have been beaten and battered throughout their individual bouts. When all comes to a head at the gathering, an unexpected event happens. What lies in store? Stay tuned to find out…_

_Jikai… (Next Time…) on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Awakening on the Horizon…_

_Sasuke: "This power…It feels…"_

_DHO: Are you at a loss for words, Sasuke?_

_Sasuke: "It feels…indescribable…"_

**Anyway, let me know what you think. Try to use appropriate grammar and spelling…**_**please**_**. It's kind of hard to decipher some of your thoughts. Send any and all suggestions by private messaging. That includes "should do this later" statements. I will NOT pay attention to "have this and have that" comments. I have a general feeling about where to go in **_**my**_** story.**

**I know that you want to get it all out in one flare, but this leaves things in better order for me.**

**Specialty Guide**:

**Chakram**: a throwing weapon that was used by the ancient Indians; it is a flat metal disc with a sharp outer edge from 5 to 12 inches (13−30 cm) in diameter. The word _chakram_ derives from Sanskrit meaning "round, circle or wheel." Earliest references come from the Indian epics _Mahabharata_ and _Ramayana_. It was used by Indian armies, mostly by Sikhs (who have it on at least one flag). It is due to its aerodynamic shape that it is not easily deflected by wind. (Wikipedia)

Now you have a general idea from where _chakra_ is derived.

**Romaji/Jutsu Guide**:

**Kyodaija**: Great Snake (can be pluralized to be "Great Snakes" as well)

**Tokubetsu Jounin**: Special High Ninja

**Shinigami**: Death God or God of Death

**Youkai no Enkou**: Phantom Flame (refer to Chapter Seven for more information)

**Inyou**: cosmic dual forces; yin and yang

**Abayo**: good-bye; farewell

**Nami no Kuni**: lit. Wave Country; in English TV, Land of Waves

**Kyoumeisen (Vibrating Sound Drill)**: C-rank offensive close-range ninjutsu; this jutsu can be used as a blanket term for the majority of the jutsu of Kinuta Dosu. The sound drill involves Dosu's Melody Arm, a porous metal device located on his arm, used to amplify the sound waves from arm movements to attack his opponent. By generating enough sound, Dosu can use his chakra to redirect the waves in midair to his intended target (Narutopedia).

**Konoha Senpuu (Leaf Whirlwind)**: D-rank offensive close-range taijutsu; jutsu is a set-up attack for a stronger jutsu, which consists of a simple, but very fast, duck followed by a powerful upward kick, which sends the opponent flying (Narutopedia)

**Konoha Shoufuu (Leaf Rising Wind)**: unknown rank close-range taijutsu maneuver; using quickness and agility, the user will do a swift upwards kick at their opponent or at a weapon that the opponent is holding (description from Narutopedia; name from Naruto HQ)

**Shinkirou Buyou (Mirage of the Dancing Leaf** or **Dancing Leaf Mirage)**: C-rank offensive close-range taijutsu; this body-to-body technique allows the user to position him or herself beside the prone target in the air after a performing the **Konoha Shoufuu (Leaf Rising Wind)**; this jutsu is an alternative version of **Kage Buyou (Dancing Leaf Shadow)** (created)

**Byakuren Kyoufuu (White Lotus Strong Wind**, alternatively known as **Strong Wind of Purity)**: Low B-rank offensive close-range taijutsu; this jutsu requires the opening of the **Kaimon (Initial Gate)**; having prepared the jutsu by unwrapping the bandages on his arms, the user kicks his opponent into the air (**Leaf Rising Wind**), and then performs the **Shinkirou Buyou (Dancing Leaf Mirage)** to move beside the target in question; as a variant of the **Omote Renge (Front Lotus)**, the user wraps up the opponent's limbs when he or she moves underneath the opponent to have his or her back to the target; from the inertia and force of the user moving underneath the opponent, said user spins rapidly while falling to the ground; instead of the typical piledriver of the **Front Lotus**, the user loosens up the bandages at the right moment for the opponent to fall downward at close to terminal velocity; the user then can kick down the opponent to increase the damage of the impact; this jutsu takes a minor strain on the muscles when in comparison to the **Front Lotus** (created)

**Zankuuha (Decapitating Air Wave)**: D-rank close-range offensive/defensive ninjutsu; using the air tubes implanted in his arms, Zaku can control air pressure, creating supersonic blasts of air powerful enough to destroy stone (Narutopedia)

**Suiton: Suijinheki (Water Release: Water Encampment Wall)**: C-rank defensive ninjutsu; user blows water out of his mouth to block an oncoming attack (Narutopedia)

**Youjutsu Magen: Oniyuri no Doki (Dark Art Demonic Illusion: Wrath of Tiger Lilies)**: This dark art-based demonic illusion is a B-rank offensive/supplementary Haruno-clan hijutsu/genjutsu blend, where the user transforms several crimson-hued boomerang-like objects into little "tigers" to aid the user in battle; they can be used to serve as a distraction to set up for numerous assaults; this dark art was developed in Kusagakure and the user must have close to faultless chakra control in order for this technique to be used and maintained (created)—It's a pun, I know.


	14. Awakening on the Horizon

**A/N**: It's been a while, but I have finally returned to this fic! Hail and rejoice. Ladies and gentlemen, let me clearly state this: I will _**never**_ abandon something that I have put an effort in creating, so stop it with the worrisome private messages and whatnot. It gets annoying after quite some time. If I had a 'complete' sign tacked on this fic, or if I changed the summary to 'abandoned,' then those would have been _strong_ indicators for a chucked idea.

With that said, I would like for you folks to look more at my profile to see the progression of my chapters from hereafter. That should help resolve the issue and soothe your worry.

Anyhow, I give greetings to all that are still with me from the last set of chapters, while waiting 'patiently' to boot. The rant needed to be stated from the last installment. Even authors know when to put down their feet on certain issues, especially to the close-minded that don't take the time to enjoy a story.

In the words of my friend and fellow author, **pudgypudge**, you should treat each story as "a new experience," instead of comparing one to the other or even your own…that or use canon as a measuring stick. In his other words, "leave all your preconceptions of canon at the door." Here is more of his thought on the issue:

"…_if you go in with a blank slate of expectations, then the story will instantly be better."_

In short, I had to take my stand on the issues-at-hand by willing my brief diatribe on "suspension of disbelief." And like I said in last chapter, those cases are closed, with the last chapter correcting what has been up to this point (along with rolling revisions). Oh, and another thing…Do NOT rush me to update.

In regards to the harem/complex romance issue, beside the claim I stated earlier, I have made no implications on the matter; however, it has been set in stone. I've been practically throwing curve balls of mystery at you. Only a few know where I'm going with the romance issue, but I'll leave the rest of you in the dark and keep things—what some call it—"on the hush" for now.

**Reviews**: I'm at 470+ and growing and I have gained over 140,000 hits. Readers, reviewers, those that take a partial glance, I would like to take this opportunity to thank those that made it possible.

In regards to Sakura's **Youjutsu Magen: Oniyuri no Doki (Dark Art Demonic Illusion: Wrath of Tiger Lilies)**, it is a pun, meaning that it's a play on words. It is not to be taken at face value…or literally. She also will have another Dark Art Demonic Illusion regarding the same issue. These types of Youjutsu Magen will be puns on animalistic flower names.

From last chapter, the "sleeping companion" was, in fact, Doshaburi. Apologies for not making it _clear_ enough.

_**Things don't appear what they may seem from last chapter, as well as this one coming up. I'll leave you guessing with what I mean. When you are reading, you also have to take into account of what's not written as well, even though the majority of you want it spelled out to you. For my fic, you have to 'think' your way through, for once, especially what's behind the text.**_

_**When you are reading (or rereading) this fic, be very wary of what you are interpreting. I have stressed and laid out hidden meanings within the hidden meanings. Look "underneath the underneath," as Kakashi would say (and from the omake, of which will be placed at the end of this fic, per request of **_**welltossedsalad**_**), and you will find my true metaphors. The clues are there. Only a few of you may know…or I've told it to you, already…**_

But I digress from the current situation (along with trying to educate the public). Let us march onward to the next chapter to ease the impatient minority…

_Saishuukai… (Last time…) on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_From the myriad of trees, three bodies impacted the earth while a fourth and fifth hopped down from their run through the forest to catch up with their respective adversaries._

_Kin and Sakura were tussling with one another by rolling on the ground and pulling on each other's hair. They were close to out of chakra, so their brawl devolved into a hair-pulling catfight._

_Zaku was clutching his chest. The force behind that drilling torrent was phenomenal. He knew that the fox-eared twerp had a lot of chakra on account of that red flare from earlier in the morning, but he did not take into account into _how much_ he possessed._

_Dosu looked a bit haggard and Naruto looked a bit winded from pursuing his soaring opponent. Aside from his chakra control issue, Naruto was otherwise fine, save for a cut here and there, along with a little bit of dirt and grime. The cuts were slightly hissing on account of the regenerative abilities from Kyuubi-sama._

"_All of these Leaf cockroaches just keep on appearing," Dosu said. "You're starting to bug me."_

"_Don't you get it?" Zaku asked between breaths as he staggered to his feet. "We're only here for this Sasuke guy, and nothing is going to stop us. I don't see why all of you are going out of your way just to protect one person…"_

"_Hn…It looks like you pieces of trash are getting dealt with by these low-life, second-rate ninja…"_

_Everyone turned to look at the new arrivals perched on a high branch. It was none other than Lee's two teammates, Tenten, with a concerned look on her tanned face, and Hyuuga Neji, with a cold, withering glare at the scene before him._

"_You made a grave mistake by picking the wrong one to mess with," Neji remarked with a frown and pointed at an unconscious Lee. "That knocked-out weirdo is from our team, and…" The veins around his eyes bulged to unreal proportions as the chakra channeled into his eyes, activating his intimidating Byakugan. "You're going to pay for that!"_

_From Neji's doujutsu activation, it slightly frightened those who have not witnessed the stare from the White Evil Eye._

'What's this?' _Dosu remarked to himself. He was alarmed._ 'It's like his eyes see through everything…'

"_It appears that you are far outnumbered for the moment…" Neji paused when he noticed a dark aura around the vicinity. What was that kind of chakra? "…In fact, I don't have to worry about stepping in."_

_Dosu sneered. "Quit acting smug and face me here and now."_

_Neji still held that confident smirk as he released the chakra from his eyes and closed them._

"_I believe that would be unnecessary," the Hyuuga prodigy responded with a fixed grin that screamed arrogance. "Besides, I wouldn't want to get my hands dirty."_

_All parties that were in attendance felt a tremendous spike of energy and turned toward the source…_

"_Sasuke-kun, you're awake…" Sakura's voice tapered off as she released a stunned Kin from her clutches. With her focus lost, her boomerangs reverted back to normal. Something was amiss with her dark-haired crush…._

_Shikamaru's eyes went unnaturally wide when he looked at what he had seen…_

_Chouji dropped his bag of chips to take in the sight of the arising shinobi…_

_Ino was stunned to the core as well._ 'Is that…Sasuke-kun…?'

_Naruto did not know what to think…._

_Time stood still in the brink of the silence, save for the dark, whirling tendrils of rampant energy. The dark-haired avenger spoke to break the stillness as he opened his eyes…_

"_Naruto…Sakura…Who did that to you?"_

_**Chapter Fourteen**__: Awakening on the Horizon_

(Day Three, 10:05 am)

The clouds in the sky have exhausted their moisture. The storm has ended, but a new one was under way…where the eye was focalized into the body of one particular individual…

XXXXXXXXXX

When Sasuke opened his eyes, his doujutsu was already activated, whirling about in a dangerous manner. But when he spoke, it sounded as if his voice was strained, almost as if he were of two minds. There were jagged lines that were starting to creep around his neck region.

Naruto and Sakura could tell one thing, even though he had nothing to combat the influence…

He was forcing back that odd mark with a lot of self-control and self-imposed will…even while awakening from it…

In short, he was fighting it on his own, with no aid whatsoever.

'_That's it,' _Naruto thought. _'Fight it…Shake it off, Sasuke…You know that we did it…Remember that natural strength comes from within…not from borrowed power…' _

He corrected his thought when his tenant displayed a slighted look._ '…Outside of what has been given to you. Uh…I'm a hypocrite, aren't I, Kyuubi-sama?'_

'**Well, my power is natural to an extent, and you were unwillingly accepted in the matter,'** Kyuubi reasoned. **'I would assume you mean the cursed mark, right?'** Naruto mentally nodded while the fox spirit displayed a cheeky grin. **'I thought so. Then, I can live with it.'**

"Fight it back, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura shouted, hoping that her voice carried itself to his ears.

"We roughed up your little clique, so what of it!?" Zaku haughtily retorted. His brashness was on par with Naruto; however, Zaku did not know when to quit.

Sasuke could feel the hidden intent to kill and bloodlust manifesting within him.

"This **power**…it **feels**…" He held up his hands and looked at them as if they were new appendages. He could feel the power trying to surge through him. He was hearing the words, "_**Kill…kill the spiky-haired dope…**_" chanted in the recesses of his mind, and he tried his best to tune out the silky sound.

Dosu caught on. "His chakra is too large. It feels like two reserves, instead of one," he murmured under his breath.

He was inwardly terrified. _'I see…As I thought…The marks on their necks were in fact cursed seals…And yet, two shattered them and Sasuke woke up from it…and is still fighting back, somehow forging his own immunity…'_ His visible eye widened. _'Just who in the hell _are_ these kids?'_

Sasuke was neither smiling nor frowning. "…**Indes**cribable…"

'_Dammit…This doesn't look good,' _Kin pondered to herself with a worried frown on her face. She was slowly crawling away, so as to not make conspicuous movements. _'Let's just back away…and try not to set off this ticking time-bomb. That energy…it's unreal…'_ She was gravely mortified. She harmed Sasuke's teammate and she was low on chakra from fighting with the pink-haired girl.

…Not a good thing.

Maybe if she tried to reason with him so she would not provoke his current state…

"I don't see why you're standing around, guys," Zaku foolhardily said as he clapped together his palms. "There's no need to be afraid of this half-dead freak."

…But unfortunately, Zaku's outburst sealed the deal, and his actions were about to set off a grim chain of events.

'_Kuso…'_ Naruto mentally cursed as he scooped up a shaking Doshaburi. He knew the jutsu in the making coming from a mile away, since he felt the after-burst a while ago during his bout with the one known as Zaku.

It may have sculpted more of his six-pack abs in the process.

"Ino, Shikamaru, Chouji, Sakura," Naruto spoke in a low tone within their earshot. "We need to stand back and get down. This _will_ get ugly." He hoped to the many kami that Sasuke had shaken off the warped influence as he dashed away from the potential blast radius.

By listening to the blond's hushed voice, Tenten and Neji were positioned for either a counterattack or moving behind the tree for momentary refuge.

'_Since when did_ he _out of all people assume command as leader?'_ Ino thought as she followed suit, with an awkward scowl engraved on her face. _'I thought that he couldn't lead his way out of a paper bag…'_

It was official. The boy _had_ changed…drastically. She was most certain of it. He was no longer "that" Naruto in her eyes…for the moment. He would be bound to screw up, sooner or later. She was hoping for that slim chance.

Chouji was wondering something similar. It seemed as though his friend either hid his talents from the likes of everyone at the Academy or Naruto learned very quickly immediately after being promoted to a shinobi. If that were case, then Naruto must have had an ungodly learning curve. His gut instinct leaned more toward his latter thought.

Said blond turned around to look down at the dark-haired kunoichi that was scared out of her wits. He did not want to see another damsel in distress, but the one known as Kin had to receive what was coming to her, even though it may kill her.

"I offer you my apologies, Kin-san…" His words were barely above a murmur.

'_You reap what you sow,'_ he mentally added as his upper body shifted forward to run away as fast as possible.

Squad Ten dashed in the opposite direction that Sakura and Naruto were heading, with foxy comrade cradled in the blond's arms.

"Zaku, don't you realize…?" Dosu's words fell on deaf ears when Zaku launched into brave foolishness.

"**Zankuukyokuha**!!"

From both of his hands Zaku fired a massive blast of air to the space that Sasuke occupied. The backlash of the giant wave moved Dosu a bit off his feet while Kin, the lightest of the group, was carried around another tree and landed on Sakura, who, like everyone hidden behind the copious shrubbery, was holding down her head with her arms.

The pinkette managed to utter out, "Oof" when she felt a human-sized mass land on top of her. As a result of the slight nudge into the earth, Sakura's head hit and bounced off slightly, promptly rendering her unable to continue.

Naruto turned to the side to see what had occurred, and he sweat-dropped. Sakura, who suddenly had a new alteration to her hairstyle, was face-down and knocked out while a disoriented Kin looked close to passing out as well from being flung at a high velocity.

"Glad of you to drop in," Naruto remarked with a smirk to the long-haired brunette who was spared Sasuke's retribution for the moment. "But can I ask you to get off my teammate, please? You're kind of smothering her for the moment."

Doshaburi was yipping in slight laughter. "Shishou, is Sakura okay?" he asked between his vulpine sniggering.

Naruto stroked his companion's coat in a soothing manner to becalm his worry. He glanced at the two incapacitated girls before shifting back his attention. "She'll be okay for now, Dosha-chan. How are you holding up?"

"I'll be o-okay for now…It's just…Th-that power…" The furry fox's eyes were darting every which way. The amount of suffocating energy potential was unnerving him.

"I know, I know," Naruto whispered in a hushed tone. _'I just hope he pulls through…But just in case…'_

The blond-haired shinobi sat down Doshaburi and formed a few clones to assess the situation.

The fox's innocent face looked up at his master with wonder. His eyes sparkled with brilliant…confusion…as his head tilted to one side. "What happened to your ears, shishou?" The little fox kit blinked owlishly.

In her semi-conscious daze, a bewildered Kin thought that she heard a voice coming from that tawny-colored canine, but it could have just been her imagination. The dizziness overwhelmed her and she subsequently fell into unconsciousness.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Tower, same time)

Shino, Akamaru and Kiba were panting heavily from their brief training session to hone their skills a bit more. They were winded and no longer able to continue, but their other teammate was another issue, in and of itself…

The two boys really wondered and worried about Hinata. They wondered about the Hyuuga heiress because of her newfound drive for change, along with the alien look of determination on her sweaty face. They were also preoccupied about her state of mind and well-being. She just should not try to force herself beyond her natural limits.

She had also foregone her light, white jacket, which was lying in a distant corner three meters to their northeast. For some apparent reason, Kiba just could not help but look what was protruding from that black T-shirt…

"Wow…" Kiba muttered under his breath as he took a sip from his water bottle.

"You were staring at Hinata's well-endowed assets again, weren't you, Kiba?" Shino asked with a small grin hidden by his high-brimmed collar. He was amused; to say the least, knowing that her heart was evidently somewhere else and Kiba wanted to ogle…

That and the dog-user sputtered and choked on his water.

"I was not!" he barked in a low growl, in between coughs. "I was only admiring her form and nothing more!" He pounded his chest a bit before his windpipe was cleared.

"You're lying, Kiba. Why do I know this?" the bug-host asked as he turned to Kiba and adjusted his glasses with his right hand. "It was because my bugs picked up on your heightened testosterone when she started to…bounce, for lack of a better term…"

"Oh, screw you, Shino," Kiba grumbled as he walked away to get some food. There was no need to cover up the lie any longer.

He was busted.

"C'mon Akamaru. Let's get some grub."

Said white pup yipped in compliance and followed his owner at a steady gait.

For the first time in his young life, Aburame Shino's patient and uncomplaining demeanor cracked a bit. He had chuckled slightly, out of earshot of his teammates, and shook his head on account of Kiba's antics.

Aforementioned indigo-haired kunoichi of interest was moving with fluid grace in one of the training foyers. Her canteen of water was nestled well under right arm, courtesy of the tight-fitting leather strap across her left shoulder. Under her arms were hovering, crescent waves of water that were pushed and pulled by her chakra. Her hips twisted along with her limbs and that caused the aerial trails of liquid to follow along with her movements.

'_Must…work…harder…'_ Hinata thought to herself between huffing and puffing between her kata styles. With a swift motion, her arms were raised above her head as the water mimicked the arcing angles.

From the viewpoint of a typical bystander, as well as Shino's, Hinata looked like she was wielding blades of water as they "slashed" upward before they retracted and whipped around due to her sudden rhythm change.

"Hinata," Shino spoke up as he walked to the Hyuuga heiress.

Her opalescent irises panned on the bug-user's sunglasses. Losing focus, the suspended fluid splashed onto the ground, causing her to squeak in shock.

Yeah…that was _the_ Hyuuga Hinata underneath that façade of meditation, all right.

"I think that you should not overexert yourself," he continued. "You've done well, and you have already come far. It's best to not burn yourself out for what's ahead."

Hinata mumbled a weak "okay" before flashing through four handseals, ending on Inu.

"**Suiton: Kyuusuido no Jutsu**," Hinata called out in a meek tone. The liquid elevated from the floor in globules and funneled back into her black-hued flask in a splashing vortex. It seemed as though the ground was not drenched at all from the mishap a moment ago.

Shino raised an eyebrow as Hinata screwed the hanging cap on the fluid-holding gourd and wiped the beads of sweat from her brow. He knew that she could work with water, but he had no idea that she had other _ninjutsu_ in her arsenal. The kikaichu-user thought that all combat-trained Hyuuga primarily used Jyuuken taijutsu. He had yet to see a Hyuuga perform a ninja technique aside from basic Academy ones.

The Hyuuga heiress seemed to be a possible enigma on par with Uzumaki Naruto…

And what was the issue with their jounin instructor? Kurenai-sensei was wearing something rather…odd when they greeted them. The tight-fitting green jumpsuit almost made Kiba die from a massive nosebleed…

He pinched the bridge of his nose. He was thinking too hard for the moment about the mazes of mystery and unanswered questions.

'_One problem at a time, Shino,'_ he chanted to himself. _'One problem at a time…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, 10:20 am)

When Zaku canceled his ace-in-the-hole technique, a parabolic trench was engraved into the ground, and there had been no one in sight.

Zaku panted with his arms still held out. He could only perform roughly two of the Extreme Decapitating Air Waves in the same day. That just happened to be his last burst on account of wasting his first blast against a certain fox-eared wonder.

"Heh," Zaku snickered to himself with a triumphant look etched upon his visage. "I've blown him away…"

"Blown who away?"

Zaku's blood ran cold when he heard something akin to crackling lightning behind him. How could a kid like that move so quickly?

Sure enough, it was Sasuke, with arms partially crossed over one another with his hands enveloped in the wild, arcing static.

"Relay this to your little Snake Boss," Sasuke said with a sly smirk that could have been on par with his blond enigma of a teammate. He prepared his hands, stretching out the miniature chains of lightning emanating from his palms. "…I have the power that I need…**although I thank him for** the bonus…**Seidenki Houden**!"

The dark-haired avenger grabbed the back of Zaku's shirt and the strong voltage was unleashed in commanding rings of electricity. The high-powered current ran through the now-convulsing Oto-nin's body, who was screaming bloody murder, before collapsing onto the ground in a smoldering heap. A portion of Zaku's muscles jumped about in spasms as a few zaps still raced across his body.

"**One** down," Sasuke replied with a slightly sinister smirk. He loved this newly found power, and he wanted to revel in it. "**Now**,who's next?"

Suddenly, Sasuke blanked out in thought before clutching his head in agony. He knelt down on his haunches and gnashed together his teeth due to the splitting headache and the searing corporeal pain. The dark energy circulated around his body as the marks grew more prominent.

'_**Kill…**__'_ the voice smoothly chanted. _'__**Kill everyone in sight to gain more power…**__'_

'_No!'_ Sasuke mentally roared, attempting to force back the mark with closed eyes. _'Must…contain it…Ugh…Need restraint…This isn't me…"_

Out of his inner conflict, he felt a familiar presence…in multiples, for that matter. He strained open one of his eyes and saw the dobe and his clones standing in front of his knelt-down form. One of his bunshin (or the original, for he could not tell) turned to glare down at him like some sick dog waiting to be put down. The icy look promised death if he let the mark on his nape rule over him.

That got him to calm down a little, for his orbs reverted back to his normal, charcoal-gray. After he deactivated his doujutsu, the marks lining his body receded to the triple-tomoe seal on his nape. The voice in his head was nowhere to be heard.

The Sharingan user, while panting heavily, quickly surmised that the blasted mark was linked to his eye activation.

Meanwhile, a haggard Naruto and his clones stood their ground, taking up a defensive position in front of his downed teammate, kunai and shuriken poised for launch.

Dosu picked up the Earth scroll near a fallen Zaku and presented it to the team, clenched in his extended arm.

"You all are strong; stronger than what I could have imagined. We can't defeat you at this current time," Dosu remarked as he placed the parchment onto the ground. "Here is a gift for you. With this out of our hands, let us take our leave."

The small squad of the blue-eyed shinobi kept up their defenses on account of a possible ploy to let down their guard. One of the Naruto-bunshin gave a subtle signal for the furry fox to slowly emerge from the surrounding shrubbery, with both girls on his back.

'…_Now exactly_ w-why _did I v-volunteer for this?'_ Doshaburi asked himself between huffs as he was close to being crushed by the weight of the two females. His wobbly legs were indicators of the evident strain.

Another bite to his master's ankle was at hand…

The real Naruto gave one of his replications a quick look to do what was necessary. Said duplicate picked up the lightweight female of the Hidden Sound and walked up to Dosu.

The handoff went off without a hitch as the Naruto clone picked up the necessary scroll and tossed it to the original. The duplicate dissipated in a wisp of smoke after his task was completed.

"This may seem a bit convenient in circumstance, but there is something that I need to look more into," the bandaged shinobi said as he picked up his other unconscious teammate, who groaned in pain.

He leveled a stare toward Sasuke and the fox-eared kid. "However, I will promise you this. If another situation arises with our teams clashing again in this exam, then we will neither run nor hide." He turned away from the squad and jumped off to parts unknown.

'_Telling us to kill Sasuke and yet he went ahead of us and marked the entire team,'_ Dosu pondered as he was dashing off as fast as he could. _'You didn't kill Sasuke-kun and the others but applied the Ten no Juin…' _His visible eye narrowed. _'What the hell is your reasoning, Orochimaru-sama…?'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Naruto lowered his guard as the sweat drenched his face, with some of the profuse saline stinging his cerulean-blue orbs.

"I think…it's safe…to come out now," Naruto said between pants as he slumped by one of the numerous trees. As he relaxed, the last bit of replications vanished in wispy puffs of smoke.

Team Ten appeared from their hiding spot in a local patch of shrubbery and bushes.

"Are you alright, guys?" Shikamaru asked. He turned to his female teammate. "This may be troublesome, but Ino, you take care of Lee." The blonde-haired kunoichi nodded in compliance and hurried over to the downed shinobi. Shikamaru had then turned to the other blond. "You look a bit worse for wear." He lightly slugged the Naruto's left shoulder.

Naruto winced a bit. "Oi, oi!" he shouted as his eyes narrowed. "That's my tender arm, damn it!"

"Yep," Shikamaru concluded. "That's the Naruto that I've come to know…whiny as ever…" Naruto's eyes cut sharply at the lazy shinobi. "Anyway, are you alright? You seem a bit winded."

"I'll be fine," Naruto answered as his eyes relaxed, half-lidded. "I just need rest, is all."

"I'll take watch of the team from here on out," Sasuke mentioned as he lifted himself from off the terrain. He was in a bit of pain as well. "Be careful out there." He leaned on a local tree to support his full weight.

"Hold on," Tenten said as she landed near Ino from their hiding spot. "I'll take him off your hands."

The weapons mistress grabbed the taijutsu expert by the shoulders and violently shook him from out of his dazed stupor. "_Snap out of it, Lee! Get a grip!_"

Eventually, Lee gained his bearings. "Ugh…" He groaned due to his skull-splitting headache. "Tenten, why are you here?"

"At first, we came to help out," the bun-haired girl said with a small smile gracing her lips. "But…" She trailed off.

"Huh?" Lee's head darted around to see no form of hostility. "To where did the Oto-nin disappear?"

"From what I could tell, that Sasuke guy drove him off, along with that blond-headed kid," Tenten answered while thumbing in their direction, behind her back.

'_Impressive,'_ Neji thought as he scoped out the competition with his scrutinizing eyes from the trees. _'That team is…mildly formidable as a whole. And to think that I called them pathetic and worthless…'' _

Neji's eyes narrowed in resolution. _'However, if they face me, then they will succumb to their demise…Fate is certain in its views…'_

Shikamaru nodded. "Well, you heard the guy. Things are covered here. Ino, Chouji, let's move out." He turned to Naruto before departing. "We'll somehow get our hands on some scrolls and meet you at the tower before the deadline. Don't get too reckless…"

'_I'll ask him later about that Wood Release spectacle,'_ the shougi-player deduced in afterthought.

The blond shinobi nodded and closed his eyes while his furry comrade climbed onto his lap and dozed off as well.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death, 1:23 pm)

Roughly three hours elapsed after the Konoha shinobi parted ways, while Naruto rested due to partial chakra exhaustion in the meantime. He was in the midst of dreams and ramen heaven when water was splashed onto his face.

He coughed and sputtered, trying to rid the foreign liquid from his airways. Said motion disturbed Doshaburi, causing him to stir as well. His eyes shot wide open to catch the person responsible for disturbing him…

"What the hell did you do _that_ for, hiretsukan!?" Naruto barked.

"We shouldn't stay in one place for so long," Sasuke said as he held out the incriminating, empty water bottle, angled to the point where the remnants dripped out. "There could be other shinobi that could take both scrolls from us."

"Ugh…Could you have found _another_ way to get me awake?" Naruto flatly asked as he blew out excess fluid from his nostrils.

A smirk danced about on Sasuke's face. "Nope," he replied.

"Well, other than that _rude_ awakening, how're you holding up?"

"A bit weak in the knees, and my chakra gets messed up if I try to use my Sharingan…" He knelt down beside one of the numerous trees, next to the unconscious pinkette.

"Serves you right, bastard," Naruto muttered under his breath.

That jab was not lost on Sasuke when his ears perked up. "Care to repeat that again?" he asked with caution. He added with clenched teeth, "I didn't quite catch that."

"I said, 'Serves you right, bastard,'" Naruto curtly chided in even tones, just to get across the clear message. "Like my clones mentioned before the spars, the Sharingan isn't _that_ great…"

That immediately caused Sasuke to glare daggers at the buffoon who started it all.

"I wouldn't be in this mishap if it weren't for a certain _dobe_ and his _Mokuton_ display," the Sharingan-user rebuked with arms crossed over his chest.

A tick mark made its way onto Naruto's brow, indicating his frustration. "Hey, don't go pointing proverbial fingers!" Naruto roared. "That creepy snake bastard wanted _your_ body…Not mine! I just saved your ass from getting bitten…" The whisker-marked kid eased up a little in his glare. "…Or at least tried to…"

"I don't buy that tall tale, dobe. And besides, it happened anyway, Sakura and you included," Sasuke retorted as he rubbed the aforementioned mark. He pointed at the ocher fuzz in Naruto's lap with his other arm. "I still don't believe the spiel about that talking fox, either."

"That's a different ability. It's something only unique to me."

"Well, isn't that the same as a bloodline limit, smart-ass?"

"No," Naruto hastily said. "I don't know. There could be others, but I just don't know. Just please let my other ability slide, Sasuke. You're infringing on uncomfortable territory that shouldn't be lightly brought up."

"Hn," Sasuke snorted. "I can pry all I want, since you're my teammate, after all."

Naruto assumed a downhearted look. "There are some things that are just better left unspoken, even among the group."

"Ano…" Doshaburi interrupted, which caused the two boys to look down at the kit. Since Sakura was out of commission, he decided to play temporary mediator. "I don't think that we are getting anywhere fast with this bickering…" His eyes shifted from right to left, noting his nervousness.

"Right," Naruto said. Then a flash of realization came to mind. "Oi, where's Sakura?"

'_This chat isn't over, Naruto…'_

"Over here, next to me," Sasuke responded, holding up her limp arm. It felt soft...

He lightly shook his head. Now was not the time for those kinds of thoughts…

Business first…

"She has a minor concussion from a few hours prior. She should be up within a few minutes to the next hour."

"Well, in that case," Naruto said as he moved Doshaburi from his lap and shakily stood up. "I'll try to find some help…"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Are you insane? We shouldn't be making _friends_ here in the Forest of Death, dobe…"

"I'm not talking about shinobi help," the whisker-marked genin responded. "I'm going to somehow call out to the wild without diverting attention to us…"

A flummoxed look made its way onto Sasuke's face as he watched the dobe ascend to the forest canopy in graceful leaps.

He sometimes envied and hated his "on the fly" thinking habits at the same time…

Sasuke just would not know what had been going on in that brain of his.

Thinking of which, about _what_ was he referring to?

XXXXXXXXXX

Naruto scaled up the copious foliage in the treetops, taking in the view of the sea of trees. As he ascended, he perched on one of the highest branches in the surrounding area. The whisker-marked shinobi turned a bit northward and noticed the staggering distance between where they were positioned and the tower…

To put it in simple terms, they had a good bit to go. However, at the rate his team was progressing, they were never going to make it under the five-day deadline.

His thinking was put on hold when he heard a triplet of burly growls emanating a bit in the southwestern direction.

'_I ought to check it out…'_

Naruto's eyes narrowed to block out most of the sunlight. From what he could tell, as he approached the source of the subtle roaring, was that there was an unknown, lone woman with a purple ponytail…and a triad of husky beasts with orange and black stripes…

The blond's eyes widened considerably by the size of those animals, and only one thought perforated his mind.

'_Whoa…_big_ kitties…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Meanwhile…)

Mitarashi Anko was stuck.

On her way to the Forest of Death Tower, she was surrounded by a pack of bloodthirsty tigers that were craving for a fresh meal. She tried to outmaneuver and outrun the furry felines, but it was to no avail. Through trickery and clever tactics, the trio managed to corner her in a pincer-like formation.

'_Seriously, I don't have the damn time to do this…'_ The lady snake-charmer remarked to herself in frustration. _'Weren't so many hours enough playtime already?'_

She was about to hurl some of her concealed kunai right between each of the felines' eyes when a slightly familiar presence alerted her to look up. Her eyes narrowed dangerously into slits. Anko gnashed together her teeth in further exasperation.

The sun-kissed locks…the jumpsuit etched with orange, along with its complementary hitai-ate…

It was the blond gaki that made a fool out of her before the second exam's commencement…with a new pair of altered ears.

Now what the hell was he doing in _this_ part of the forest? He was veering off in the opposite direction from the tower.

Her look of frustration turned immediately to a sickeningly sweet smirk as he made a hard landing onto the earth. Just like the tigers were doing to her, she would do to the blond brat.

It was time for a little 'fun.'

"Well, hello there, little boy," Anko smoothly said, her grin never leaving her face. "What made you come my way?"

Naruto, however, did not notice the hidden playfulness as he approached the second examiner. Once again, his eyes almost came to bulging out of his sockets. "Y-You…" Naruto pointed at the lady, now identified in the clearing. "You're that crazy proctor!"

'_Why couldn't I tell who it was with that bushy ponytail?'_

Anko's grin threatened to split her face as she walked over while swaying her hips. In a way, that slightly unnerved the blond enigma.

Unfortunately, her 'playtime' was prematurely disrupted by the tigers' overarching game of cat and mouse. The group bellowing proved evidence of the fact.

Anko took the opportunity to play down the situation as being the damsel of distress, even though she could handle it with ease. "Oh, Naru-chan, I didn't know that you came to save little ol' me…" She tried to look sweetly innocent with sparkling eyes but failed miserably.

Naruto wondered what was with the eccentric woman. Her mood seemed to flip-flop, just like his spiritual occupant. "Now is not the time, Anko-san…"

The second examiner's grin ebbed away a bit. "Ah, so you're a man of business first and pleasantries later?" she asked as she placed a hand on her hip. "How about we do _both_ at the same time, ne? How about playing with four kitties instead?"

Naruto's patience was wearing thin. "…I'm not here for you," he grumbled. He pointed behind her. "They were what grabbed my attention. I need to commandeer them for my team. You see, we had a run-in with Orochimaru…"

"I know that already, Naruto," Anko intervened, smile completely foregone. "That vile fiend told me personally before he got away…again. I was on my way until…" She trailed off while looking at the swollen blemish on Naruto's left shoulder and her eyes widened a substantial margin. "You got marked with the Ten no Juin and managed to overcome it!? How in the gods' names did you do that!?"

The blond genin softly patted his stomach. "A little help," he answered quietly while Anko took on a shocked look. Was he relying on the Kyuubi for guidance?

He had then pointed behind the lady snake-charmer. "And it's the same help that's going to get these walking fur rugs to relax."

The insult made the fur on the beasts ruffle up slightly. They were beyond pissed that some runt belittled them like that.

As they tried to move in, they were halted by a sudden pressure that quickly surrounded the area.

The leader of the feline group, one with a slash over his left eye, shakily looked up at the large-eared whelp that was now consumed in a reddish flame.

'_Ease up a bit, Kyuubi-sama. I think they got the hint…'_ Naruto mentally channeled to the beast behind his belly.

'**Okay,'** the fox said as he powered down the youki.** 'But I was having fun, you know.'**

'_You'll get your fun later on…maybe…'_

"Alright you overfed beasts, I need your aid for a moment," Naruto spoke as the tigers remained in place. "You scratch my back and I will scratch yours. I offer you this if you will help me get my squad to the tower."

Naruto whipped out a scroll from his inner pockets and unfurled the elongated parchment along the ground. A sealing circle lined with kanji was the only image etched onto it.

The blond boy took a seat on the hard earth, clasped together his hands into the Hitsuji seal and shut his eyes in the process. "…Kai!"

With a poof of iridescent smoke, the enlarged insect came into existence as it had lain on the piece of paper.

"I know that it may not be much," Naruto spoke up, eyes still closed shut. "But I hope that this will be enough to hold you all over until you find much tastier morsels out here in the forest, with the exception of other humans." He opened his cerulean orbs and leveled a quasi-pleading look with the scar-faced 'leader.' "So, do we have a deal…or not?"

Anko's face displayed her overall confusion. Just _who_ was that kid? He blew off something that could never be removed from the skin and 'tamed' wild animals through negotiations as well.

'_The kid sure is an odd fellow…but doesn't he know that he's basically revealing himself every time he uses _that_…?'_

The lady snake-charmer frowned. He was his own personal homing beacon. Did he crave for _that_ much attention, especially drawing the attention of hostiles as well?

XXXXXXXXXX

Yakushi Kabuto was looking upon the scene before him with a keen eye, while holding onto a couple of dead Root agents that were covertly tailing the Kyuubi jinchuuriki.

To the bespectacled 'genin,' the operatives were amateurs in a sea of sharks. Why were the ANBU Root following _that_ genin, he had absolutely no clue regarding the matter, but he took them out due to the fact that they were in the way.

To him, the boy had raw potential but lacked any talents that stood out, aside from harnessing the power of the Kyuubi no Youko.

Kabuto stuffed the pair of bodies into a scroll for later medical scrutiny while he watched as the trio of hefty felines dashed off, with Naruto-kun on the back of the one presumably designated as the leader. What he had witnessed slightly piqued his interest.

'_I wonder if this would appeal to Orochimaru-sama,'_ he mused as he adjusted his corrective eyewear. The afternoon sunlight reflected off the glasses, obscuring his dark orbs from view.

He could stand to update his data on his 'ninja info cards.'

XXXXXXXXXX

(Incomplete Team Seven, 4:45 pm)

Sakura had been awake for the past hour, grooming Doshaburi with a packed brush while adjusting her uneven locks. She was also recovering from a throbbing headache due to what had occurred earlier.

The dark-eyed Uchiha was considerate enough to wet a cloth and place it over her forehead for the time being. Sasuke thought it was nothing major; Sakura, on the other hand, was inwardly beaming from ear to ear that her Sasuke-kun had been so kind and caring.

The pinkette then wondered as to where did their blond teammate had gone.

Sasuke twisted the dobe's words and passed it off as Naruto answering the 'call of the wild,' meaning that he probably had to go to the bathroom.

If that were the case, then he should have been back by now…

Either that or he must have had a weak bladder or something…

Both Sasuke and Sakura started to receive some hazy feedback from their telecommunication radios.

"Com…fo…ding…guys…"

The voice belonged to their teammate, but they could not interpret what was said.

"What did he say?" Sakura asked while she adjusted the frequency. "Did you understand that?"

"I think he said, 'comforting, guys,' but it could be something else," the raven-haired Uchiha answered as he, too, turned the dial on his radio.

"He…o…Hello…Foxy Storm to Red-Eyes and Pinky…Can anyone hear me?" Naruto's voice was clearly heard through the receiver.

Sakura grumbled and rolled her eyes. Why did _she_ have to get such a lame codename? Did she not get called _that_ by her pain of an Inner Will?

'_**Oi! I heard that…Shannaro!'**_

'_Gomen…'_

"We can hear you, Naruto. Where the hell have you been? It's near the late afternoon."

'_**It took you long enough, senpai!'**_ Inner Sakura retorted in her mindscape. She held her arms akimbo as her foot pounded on the void.

"Sorry," Naruto apologized. "I got held up, but I found some help along the way. Like I said before, I'm coming in for a landing shortly. Over and out." A click was heard over their ends before the feedback died out into vacuity.

The lone Uchiha really wondered about that blond. It was not like he was trying to fly or anything…

That thought died when the sun was blocked out by three large images. They were swiftly descending and closing in on their location.

Sasuke quickly got up and reached for a kunai in his holster. As soon as the balanced blade was clutched firmly in his palm, the three figures crash-landed with tremendous power.

The coal-eyed avenger covered his eyes to shield his precious orbs from the dust clouds.

"Hey guys," Naruto said through the now-settling debris with a wide grin. "Welcome to Uzumaki Naruto's Tiger Taxi Service and I'll be your guide for today…"

Sakura, Sasuke and Doshaburi owlishly blinked with wide eyes.

"…That guy…" Sasuke swiftly muttered under his breath before he asked the question on everyone's mind. "Now how on earth did you do _that_, dobe?"

"Trade secret," Naruto remarked. "And a bargain for a bargain. Anyway, don't just stand there. Hop on! We don't have all day."

Each of the other Team Seven members gave one another a slightly cautious look, laced with a hint of worry, before they approached their respective rides. Doshaburi, on the other hand, quickly ascended to Naruto's scalp region.

Sakura warily approached the slightly smaller feline (but not by much) and held out her hand to rub her wet, pink nose. "Are you sure that these things won't bite me, Naruto?"

Her answer was received by a tongue-licking to her open palm.

The smallest of the tiger trio noted to herself that the pink-haired one tasted delicious; however, she could not eat the blue-eyed kid's teammate. That was a promise made unto them when they ate the blond's crunchy bug. The tigress also did not want to experience that unrivaled killer intent again.

She reclined her back for the pink-haired one to get on.

Sasuke's temporary lift proved to be a bit apathetic, almost similar in personality. That made things easier for the dark-haired Uchiha as he hopped onto the behemoth feline.

He was the follower and did not care as to which way to go. As long as he would get its meal, then it would be content.

Conversely, there was a slight twinge of taint that the tiger had felt subtly pouring forth from that coal-eyed kid.

He shook his head, thinking that he and his companions were going to be liberated of those three kids when they get to their appropriate destination, so why ponder about it. It was the kids' business, and not theirs.

"Yosh," Naruto began. "Do any of you know the quickest route to that big-ass tower without being spotted?"

A quick snarling session was being shared by the three large beasts, with Team Seven out of the linguistic loop.

'_Can you understand them, Kyuubi-sama?'_ Naruto asked but was answered by a shrug from his tenant.

'**No clue,'** the Kyuubi answered with a mildly bored look. **'I don't speak feline. It's like they're speaking in a foreign tongue or something.'**

'…_Figures…'_

Three consecutive nods later, the orange-colored trio hastily took off, jolting their riders a bit, and dashed along the preplanned path that they had hashed out amongst them.

Naruto was smiling from ear to ear, taking in the rushing winds through his golden locks and cerulean orbs.

'_Now _this _is riding in style…'_

He could get use to the aid from the animal kingdom.

The furry cloudburst had his tongue hanging out of his muzzle, licking the cooling breeze.

'_Relaxation…at last…'_ Doshaburi let out a wistful sigh. It felt as if he were back at home…back with his family in Wave Country…

Several thoughts filtered through the kit's mind, one in which turned very melancholy and grim…

It was the night where he was separated from his parents by the hunters.

A lone tear pooled in one of his gray eyes and cascaded without anyone noticing.

He would have to further thank his new owner from saving him from that hell of loneliness.

Sakura was quietly yelping from the recurrent bumps when her 'taxi' leaped from branch to branch with delicate grace.

'…_Whoa…I need to hold on tight…'_ The pinkette pressed her legs more into the sides of the tigress without making matters difficult on her part. However, that earned a snort of discomfort from the heavily built feline.

"Oops," Sakura said while donning a sheepish look. "Sorry."

Sasuke remained emotionless and silent for the duration of their temporary travel guide as he gripped on a thick patch of fur to maintain his posture. He could not make it out correctly, but, riding on the back of this tiger felt…right, to a varying degree. It was almost like that he was predestined to wield something of this caliber of power. He had been most certain of it.

Maybe he could gain something like this and use it against his despicable brother…

Aside from that, he made a few quick glances over to his blond teammate. Something was just not adding up. What was the deal with that red chakra? That surely could not be a bloodline limit, even though it was special to him. He could tell that the dobe was hiding something. The other kekkei genkai were plausible, but the initial 'bloodline' that Kakashi and the dobe chalked up was a bit out there and farfetched.

'_On the other hand,'_ Sasuke pondered as they soared through the canopy. A miniature smirk graced his lips but for a second. _'The dobe would make for an excellent opponent…'_

It was not like that he would admit it to Naruto, though, but he would make a praiseworthy challenge to test the Uchiha's mettle.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Team Ten, Day Four 12:56 am)

Ino's breathing was labored as she sat on her bottom in front of a tree.

The mind-walking kunoichi had been in that state for the past three minutes. She had been working on her family's hijutsu scroll for a considerable amount of time. The techniques that she had been working on appeared to be on an entirely different level from what her father, Inoichi, normally displayed when out on fieldwork for the interrogation unit.

She wondered as to how come she never had seen them flaunted. They were offensive skills that could be utilized as pretty solid alternates if the Yamanaka in question did not want to move his or her mind into a target's body.

On the other hand, she received her answer, and it was in regard to the chakra requirement. The rest of the jutsu had a taxing amount of chakra necessary to execute them, so she settled on trying to learn two of them. It appeared that she was not making any sort of commendable progress at all. The large oak tree that remained practically unharmed by her very efforts verified that claim. Evidently, she was frustrated beyond all form of reasoning.

'_Damn it!'_ she mentally swore as she slammed her fist into the ground. _'I've been at it for hours and still no progress…What's wrong with this jutsu!?'_

She was wondering if the handseal sequence was off until she heard a rustle in the bushes.

Not wanting to be caught with her guard down, she immediately got up and assumed a loose taijutsu stance.

"Who…who's there?" she waveringly asked.

By chance, it had been her thinner teammate. The reason why she knew was that he was muttering something along the lines of 'troublesome shrubbery' as he cleared through the small thicket. Hearing her teammate's words had put her mind at ease.

"Oi, Ino," Shikamaru said as he approached the up-in-arms kunoichi. He had an object in his hand, but the blonde could not tell the identity of it. "Chouji and I just got the scroll that we needed. We can head for the tower now."

Ino sighed in defeat as she dusted off the sand and grit from her purple skirt. "Alright," she muttered in a dejected manner.

Ino walked over to where Shikamaru was standing but stopped. The young mind-walker thought that she heard something similar to the consistency of wood grinding against itself. As she turned around, her eyes shot wide open. The tree in which had been her practice target for the past several hours started to topple over. There had been an apparent slice three feet from the foot of the tall oak.

Ino's look of shock turned immediately into one of joy as she started to prance around. "Yes! Yes! I did it! I did it!" she shrieked as she pointed up at the stars. "Take that, Forehead! I'm nipping at your heels! Just you wait!"

"What's with all the ruckus, Shikamaru?" Chouji asked as he appeared from the same path that his comrade had taken. The hefty brunet had been covering tracks to keep their defeated opponents off their trail.

"It may be a pain to explain," Shikamaru began as he stuffed his hands into his pockets. "But I think Ino learned and mastered a new jutsu."

"Could it be on account of Sakura's doing?" the portly boy queried as he fished into his bag for some beef jerky.

"More or less…" The shougi-player sighed. "Either way, just when you think people can change, things get even more troublesome."

Their friend was still in her dance of euphoria.

'_She's going to be a headache and a half…Do girls really have to be _this _troublesome?'_

"Ino, now is not the time to gloat," Shikamaru lazily drawled. "Let's get going."

"Huh?" the mind-walking blonde asked, foregoing her silly foxtrot. "Oh, sorry…" Her cheeks gained a twinge of pink.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Team Seven, meanwhile…)

It had taken close to eight hours via 'wild transport' to arrive at the tower, unscathed. It appeared as if the tiger trio knew how to veer and dodge around numerous obstacles without being discerned.

Sasuke learned a thing or two by just seeing their movement, sans Sharingan.

Sakura, however, was just getting over her partial fear of them when the ride was over.

"Thanks again for the ride," Naruto said as he gave the leader a strong petting around the neck region.

His answer was a throaty grunt.

"Mou," Sakura whined. "I was just getting used to you…"

The solitary tigress purred as she licked the kunoichi's face, signaling that she was going to miss her, too…as a potential main course.

Sasuke gave his momentary companion a brief nod, acknowledging his thanks.

The leader of the furry squad bellowed subtly which signaled the others to leave as well. They have done enough and held out on their bargain with the one known as Naruto by some, 'dobe' by others.

After they left, the team heaved an unconsciously held sigh. The tower was right in front of them. After about eighty-five hours or so, Squad Seven arrived at the Forest of Death Tower, indicating that they would move on to the next round, whatever it may be.

"Let's just go through this door and put an end to our worries," Sasuke spoke up as they walked through one of the main doorways. "I've had it with the outdoors…"

"Me, too!" Sakura yelled, adding her input emphatically.

'_**Hell yeah…Let's kick some ass and take some names…Shannaro!'**_

"Are you ready for what's ahead, Dosha-chan?" Naruto asked as he looked up on his head.

Doshaburi was leaning down with a vulpine smile etched onto his muzzle. "Maybe…But I do need some more rest, shishou."

XXXXXXXXXX

(Tower, unknown location, same time…)

"So," a shady figure spoke in one of the vacant corridors as his assistant walked up to him from the Forest of Death. "How was the harvest, Kabuto?"

"It was better…than…expected…" Kabuto's eyes perceptibly enlarged as his speech died in his throat. "Orochimaru-sama, what happened to you?"

"Oh, I'll tell you what had occurred," the Snake Wizard icily remarked as his face came into view of the dim lighting. His eyes were as white as the sclera in each orb and his left arm was favoring the stub that used to be his right. "Team Seven was what happened to me…"

The Densetsu no Nin vanished from sight and appeared from out of nowhere, clutching Kabuto by the neck. "And you misinformed me, hence the reason why I am in a foul mood."

"O-Orochim-maru-sama," Kabuto tried to say between gasps of air. "The information was not com-complete. Please forgive me…"

"Done," Orochimaru haughtily articulated as he dropped Kabuto from his clutch. "You're forgiven…for now. Don't disappoint me again, Kabuto."

"H-Hai, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto shakily replied as he inhaled gulps of air to his formerly constricted windpipe.

The white-haired teen adjusted his glasses when something came to mind. "I take it that you're really interested with this…Team Seven? Or is it just Sasuke-kun?"

"I just wanted your opinion as our spy," the Great Snake answered.

"You know that's unnecessary," the 'genin' said with an eerie pleasantness in his voice. "The decision is ultimately up to you."

"Heh," Orochimaru snickered slightly. "It's no wonder why I like that intelligence of yours. To answer your query, yes, they have intrigued me, more so than what I could find."

A contemplative look passed over the glasses-wearing shinobi. "Did you mark them all with the Cursed Seal of Heaven, Orochimaru-sama?"

The Hebi-Sennin hummed amusedly. "Your conjectures are so approximate that it's a bit creepy, Kabuto." He 'looked' over to his sleeper agent in Konoha, even though he could barely see him. "As a matter of fact, yes, I marked them but with a lesser formula. I half-expected two of them to shatter what was in place."

An eyebrow perked up on Kabuto's face. "…A lesser formula?"

"You did not hear me wrong, Kabuto. Instead of branding the team directly from me, since it would have been a one-time effort, my snakes implanted the trial blueprint which had accomplished the task."

"I see," Kabuto responded as he knelt down to fish out medical supplies from his pack. "Would you…like for me to heal the damage done to you?"

"It matters not that my arm is gone, and I haven't a clue as to reverse this…affliction unto my eyes." Orochimaru waved his viable hand in front of his vacuous orbs. "I can clearly deduce that this is not a genjutsu, since I tried to break it initially.

"In any case, even if I am at a disadvantage, I will still win in the end when I crush Konoha under my foot."

"You like playing with handicaps, don't you, Orochimaru-sama?"

The wayward shinobi grinned maliciously before disappearing. "Indeed I do, when the pieces fall into place…"

That smirk slightly unnerved Kabuto as he vanished to meet up with his teammates within the tower.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N**: Once again, there is another chapter down. It may not be much, seeing that this is supposedly a cool-down chapter after all the fight progressions. Shinobi need to relax as well, right? (That's rhetorical; don't answer that).

I will say sorry for painting ANBU in such a bad lighting, even though they were stated to be the best of the best. I still find that questionable, especially from canon standpoints.

I won't apologize for the 'late' update, however, for I had things to do, like work and other important matters. If you haven't (already) done so, then check out the pilot for my next potential fic in the making, entitled _Limit Breaker: Fūjin no Ōdachi_.

Remember ladies and gentlemen: real life takes priority; writing fan fiction does not pay my way through school, nor does it put food on the table. With that said, my update speed will be slowing down a bit. That is a guarantee, since I don't really have a schedule for it, to boot.

_The Chuunin Exams are on the horizon. What lies in store for the genin that made it to the next round?_

_Jikai… (Next time…) on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Winging It! Order from Chaos_

_Naruto: …What the hell did he just say?_

_DHO: I think that you heard him quite clearly Naruto._

_Naruto: Oh, good grief…_

**Romaji/Jutsu Guide**

**Zankuukyokuha (Extreme Decapitating Air Wave)**: C-rank offensive close- to mid-range ninjutsu; a more powerful version of **Zankuuha (Decapitating Air Wave)**, the user creates a massive gust of cutting wind capable of totaling the surrounding area, wiping out anything in its path (Naruto HQ)

**Suiton: Kyuusuido no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Absorbency Technique)**: Low C-rank supplementary ninjutsu; user drains fresh groundwater from the earth; useful for prolonged trips; this technique can also be used for other purposes, such as drying a wet floor (created)

**Kikaichu**: Destruction Bugs

**Raiton: Seidenki Houden (Lightning Release: Electrostatic Discharge)**: C-rank offensive/defensive close- to mid-range ninjutsu; user dispels strong electric-natured chakra to repel targets; the static discharge can travel through media such as bodies, earth and water (created)

**Hiretsukan**: mean bastard, sneak, heel or despicable person


	15. Winging It! Order from Chaos

**A/N:** Okay, guys and gals, I shall keep this brief before I begin, just to appease those that hate my loquacious, preceding Author's Note. Unless some inane point has been brought up by a reviewer that I will gladly explain (or prove him/her incorrect), you should expect these to be short for quite some time.

First and foremost, I am going to maintain a relatively large portion of what I have for later on in this trilogy, canon updates notwithstanding (but not necessarily disregarding it entirely, per se). In short, I am continuing with what I have cooking up with my own partial tweaks. I will just add some touch-ups here and there regarding some altered theory from canon, as well as my multiple sources for this fic. Some I will take into account; others will be ignored. That is all for now.

Readers, reviewers, thank you for your time and patience while I try to get together my inspiration. Enjoy!

_**Chapter Fifteen**__: Winging It! Order from Chaos_

(Disbanded Root Division Headquarters, 2:00 am)

This must not have been Danzou's time to shine in the limelight.

He had sent off more of his mindless underlings to analyze more on Uzumaki Naruto's rapid ascension through his valuable kekkei genkai. However, he had not received any recent reception after he dispatched them. He had an inkling of a notion that his informants were not going to return…as always.

It seemed as though his 'killed in action' list had been going up in growing increments while trying to keep tabs on the Mokuton-wielding jinchuuriki. He doubted that the last, unknown Namikaze could kill that many of his peons.

He had already found out about the Uzumaki's hidden potential, for his suspicions were confirmed far beforehand. Minato slipped up and got careless, due to the fact that Danzou managed to get a copy of his supposedly secret wedding license to Uzumaki Kushina, a foreigner whose roots were never revealed.

His first scheme, albeit a very convoluted, perilous and partly controversial one, was foiled. That moment of potential treason, however, was ruined by an unknown agent that happened to be there at the wrong place at the right time.

The militarist cursed _that man's_ odd timing as well as cursing his own rotten luck.

The warmonger tried an alternate route by convincing the Hokage's advisors, but Sarutobi had to meddle with his plans on making the blond host into a 'tool' for his own bidding.

Oh, how he regretted fighting tooth and nail to take and break Naruto's spirit. He would have been an excellent forerunner as the 'blade' of Konoha, whereas he would have been the arm, directing it as he saw fit.

So, he tried another alternate route, which was to 'coax' the jinchuuriki via 'recruitment.'

That was more added to another growing list entitled 'Blunders of a Misunderstood Visionary.'

'_Maybe having my men using that cloaking technique to shroud the deserted area in silence hindered my attempts more so than helped,'_ he mused emotionlessly as he drank his tea in absolute stillness.

After he set down his mug, he rubbed his scarred chin in further contemplation. His developed technique, Soin Kanmon no Jutsu, contained the sound within an area and the only ones that were able to hear the sound had been those contained in the confines. Conversely, the barrier was the penetrable kind, meaning that those inside the 'defense' could have easily walked out of it. The war-hawk supposed that he would have to work out the kinks to that a bit later.

On the other hand, that area-affect silencing technique lessened the suspicion that it was his doing. It could not, in any way, shape or form, be traced back to him, for he had made his underling's support team disappear…for good…

They had outlived their usefulness that suited the war-hawk's needs for the current moment. His covert shinobi were expendable. It may be illegal in a sense, but it would soon be worth it.

Come hell or high water, he would get that power under his control, by any means necessary…

He would just have to figure out the most sane and sensible way to obtain it.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Forest of Death Tower, 2:00 am)

"This is weird," Sakura piped up after walking around the tower corridors. "I don't see anyone here…"

"Well, it is dark," the dark-haired avenger said as he rolled his sore shoulder muscles. "Maybe there are extra some rooms here, or something. Those that probably made it here are most likely asleep." He shrugged apathetically. "Who knows?"

"These halls suck with lighting," Naruto complained for the one thousandth time as he was walking in front of the group, magenta flame blazing in his right hand. His Phantom Flame had been acting as a makeshift candle for the past hour or so. "And why aren't you using your fire-element, Sasuke? I don't think I can sustain this jutsu for much longer."

"Two reasons…" The raven-haired recluse began to tick off points, starting with his forefinger. "One: you're a _monster_ when it comes to having a lot of energy and stamina." He held up his middle finger when Naruto inconspicuously flinched due to the emphasis on that 'm' word. "Two: I don't. In fact, I'm too low on chakra for the moment, and when I try to use Sharingan, this blasted mark screws with me and gives me a hell of a lot of pain."

"I ought to thank that snake bastard for the preventive measure," the blond muttered under his breath, out of the Uchiha's earshot. His foxy companion, on the other hand, while atop his friend's noggin, easily picked it up due to his acute hearing.

'_Shishou, I think that was uncalled for…'_

"What was that, dobe?"

"Oh, nothing. Nothing at all…"

"Hn. I'm on to your wisecracks, smart-ass…"

"Guys," Sakura interrupted while holding her head. It was still throbbing; this time, she could thank the two numbskulls for inducing it. "Enough. Just give it a rest, will you?"

"Oi, Naruto. I know that it's a pain to ask, but can you wait up?"

The attention of Team Seven was redirected to another team that was fast-approaching…and a bit worn-down, to boot.

"…Why do you look worse for wear?" Sasuke asked the forthcoming Team Ten.

"It…wasn't…easy…" Chouji answered between heaved breaths. "…Collectors…on our tails…before the Tower…" He fell flat on his bottom soon afterward.

"…Collectors?" Sakura asked with an eyebrow raised, more so to herself than anyone around. "Who are they?"

"Didn't…you hear…Forehead?" Ino asked between gasps for oxygen, hands on her knees. She held up a hand as she was normalizing her breathing for the next minute.

After gaining her composure, along with getting a flat glower from her proclaimed rival, she continued. "We had heard from another participant about teams of shinobi acting as 'collectors' around the crunch time, before the end of the exam. They're the ones that make it to the tower, but they collect extra scrolls just for the hell of it."

"You're leaving out a huge segment, Ino," the lazy shougi-player piped up with his hangdog look. "I know that it's troublesome to elaborate, but I'll try my best."

Shikamaru placed his hands into his pockets before he pressed onward, rocking back and forth on the balls of his heels. "These 'collectors' that we speak of are shinobi that go out on a limb for the extra scrolls. They essentially act as 'insurance policies' if they run into stronger foes to guarantee their getaway. In other cases, there are those that try to receive support and more information by using the extras as bargaining chips to a team belonging to their own hidden village. There are also the minority that desire to pick off more teams while at a great vantage point. This would be another way to make the rest of the exam easier; by eliminating as much of the competition as possible. The fewer scrolls there are in circulation, the lesser amount of people we have to fight.

"On the other hand, the bad thing is that these guys are confident in their own abilities, which are the worst kind of enemies to face at a time like this." The lethargic genius puffed a long sigh. "You see? Didn't I tell you that it was going to be too long-winded to clarify?"

Team Seven and Shikamaru's teammates sweat-dropped before the portly shinobi spoke up from the hanging silence. "Well, anyway, with Shikamaru's clever thinking, we managed to bypass some of the traps, but…" Chouji scratched the back of his head, donning a shamefaced look. "I…happened to set off the majority of them by accident…"

"He didn't know where he was going," Ino stated bluntly in a deadpanned monotone. "He stepped on one and the chain reaction started. That would be the reason why we dashed in here, which was to prevent from being _spotted_…" The mind-walking kunoichi leveled a glare at the tubby brunet. Chouji recoiled by the uncharacteristic stare from his bossy teammate.

"Well, we're here, nonetheless," Naruto spoke up. He narrowed his eyes as he was attempting to see through the inkiness of the dim interior. "There's a room up ahead. Let's see where it goes to. And we need to hurry up. This Youkai no Enkou is starting to singe my hand…Ow…ow…Itai…." The searing agony enveloped his scorched hand while Shikamaru searched his backpack for an emergency flare in the rapidly fading light. It was the only thing that was of notable use, even though this was not _really_ an emergency. It would have to suffice for about another hour or so, to help them navigate.

"Sasuke, can you light this flare with whatever chakra you may have available?" the slothful genin asked, holding out the wick for the lone Uchiha to light it.

The dark-eyed avenger flashed through the hand seals Mi, Tatsu and, Tora, before a miniature ember ignited with the available oxygen and hovered around his four protruding digits. "Ah…**Katon: Kyoka no Jutsu**…something with which I can light candlewicks…"

Sasuke moved the glowing cinder to the wick of the flare, which caused the materials to ignite. A bright red light emanated throughout the dark hallway in an initial flash. That caused some of the pupils of those near the epicenter of light to hastily dilate. Some even managed to avert their eyes when fire met entwined, combustible fabric. The blond shinobi had then taken the opportunity to let up on the technique to massage his singeing hand.

"And just what we need," Ino said with delight. "I knew that you would pull through for us, Sasuke-kun…"

She paced around the lone Uchiha before gripping around his neck, much to the chagrin of her rival, Sakura.

"Back…off…" Sakura bellowed between gnashed teeth. "He's off-limits, Miss Piggy! I told you that already!"

"Oh?" Ino asked as she placed a finger to her lips. "I didn't hear the warning call. Maybe it was because your big forehead blocked out the acoustics…"

Before the cerise-locked kunoichi could respond, her golden-haired comrade had cut in.

"Please," Naruto spoke up, slightly perturbed. His voice accelerated, along with a gradual crescendo. "I'm too tired to hear this shit at two in the goddamned morning! Give it a rest!"

Ino and Sakura's jaws slightly dropped on account of the enigmatic blond's outburst.

Who knew that he could get so crabby and irritable?

"Aww…Did someone rub the dobe the wrong way?" Sasuke egged on, smirk dancing playfully on his face. "Dirt where the sun doesn't shine…?"

"Can it, bastard!" Naruto roared as he favored his palm with his still-workable hand. He gritted together his teeth. "And no, no one _rubbed_ me the wrong way! My hand hurts like hell! I'm hearing the upstart of a pointless, hypocritical argument, and it's late! I just want some sleep!"

"Fine," the raven-haired shinobi detachedly garbled. "Naruto's right…for once…" He yawned, ignoring the slighted look that he had gotten from the blond mystery. "We need to see what are we supposed to do, and then, after that, we rest."

Shikamaru wearily shrugged his shoulders. "Works for me."

XXXXXXXXXX

The six shinobi (plus one quadruped) managed to find, yet again, another empty room. But this time, the empty chamber had two levels. The higher entryways were complemented by a set of railings, next to a staircase.

"Ugh," Ino bellyached. "Is there at least a light switch here? I can barely see anything, even with the flare's light."

"Ah," Shikamaru responded. "Here it is. I found it." The lazy genius flicked on the light switch, located behind the group on the wall to the left, just as their temporary source for illumination petered out. Immediately, a white, fluorescent glow cascaded everyone's vision when the top lights had soon lit up, humming quietly in the process. The brightness was a bit softer on the eyes from the emergency flare.

'_Oi, Kyuubi-sensei…'_ Naruto inwardly thought, rousing the supposed 'beast of burden' from his slumber. Had he seen his spiritual tenant, it would have been a terrifying sight. Bloodshot sclera surrounding each of the carmine irises would have made the toughest of shinobi cower on his or her knees.

'**What do you want? I'm trying to sleep here.'**

'_Don't rub it in,'_ he grumbled within the two-way link while still rubbing his aching palm.

The spirit fox frown deepened slightly.** 'And why on earth did you call me **_**sensei**_**? I am not your instructor.'**

'_I called you sensei because of the knowledge you instilled within me to help me get this far,'_ Naruto reasoned without skipping a beat. The spirit fox's eyes widened a negligible amount on account of hearing that._ 'And the reason why I wanted to talk to you was because I need to know as to how come the Youkai no Enkou—"_

'—**is hurting you, right?'** the fox-spirit interrupted, completing his host's query.

With a nod from the blond, the ninth tailed-beast continued. **'Well, like I mentioned to you after we eliminated that seal, the Phantom Flame is stronger than what it normally had been. What that means is that you can only utilize it for roughly an hour. Any prolonged use after that time period will create a type of necrotic effect upon biotic cells.'**

Seeing the frustrated look on Naruto's face, indicating that he wanted to hear the watered-down version, the fox began to simplify the diagnosis as he rubbed his sore eyes. **'What I'm trying to say is this: after one hour, the Phantom Flame will eat away at your skin, among other things; however, the regenerative abilities may **_**possibly**_** aid in replacing the dead skin cells in your hand. It will take longer to mend this damage, more so than getting nicked with a kunai or shuriken, seeing that this brand of fire is ethereal in composition. In that case, I would suggest that you try to limit the use of that jutsu. It carries that inbuilt risk, and I had called it a **_**forbidden**_** technique for a reason. That was one of the reasons why I had postponed that training back on the ship.'**

'_There are always double-edged swords when it comes to any form of power, right?'_ Naruto examined the red patches on his partially-burnt hand.

'**Yeah, yeah…All power comes with a type of price tag. Now, let me rest…'** The youma kitsune grunted before shutting off the tie between his host and him. A youkai would need his beauty sleep, after all…if one could call it that.

Naruto grumbled more to himself. It seemed as if the oddly withdrawn fox did not want to chat any longer than what needed to be said.

"So, what do we do now?" Chouji inquired as he righted himself.

Just as he was asking, the observant pinkette took notice of the big poster with writing in the dead center of the wall that they were facing.

"Hey, what's that up there?" Sakura asked while pointing up at the elongated parchment.

Ino narrowed her eyes in a squint to read the characters etched onto the poster. "Without heaven…What does that mean?" Her face took on a scrunched up look similar to her fellow blond.

"I don't know," Shikamaru replied before yawning. "But I know for a fact that there is a word missing up there. Look for yourselves."

Dawning realization, the mind-walker pondered to herself before making her thoughts known. "Maybe this message is tied into the Heaven and Earth scrolls." She placed up a finger to her lip in contemplation.

Yet again, in another rare moment of insight, her teammates' eyes bulged a bit.

'_Leave it to the airheaded blonde to figure it out,'_ Sasuke reasoned as he rolled his eyes.

"I guess that means that it's trying to tell us to open the scrolls…in a troublesome, convoluted manner of writing," Shikamaru stated as he rubbed his arm with scratches prior to his team's arrival. "Chouji, you know what to do. Hand over the Heaven scroll."

When Naruto passed Sakura the Earth scroll, she had caught sight of his hand. It looked redder and much rawer in comparison to his left. "…Is that a side effect from that technique, Naruto?" she worriedly asked.

Naruto swiftly nodded. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me." He displayed his toothy, goofy grin to conceal his evident anguish. "I'll endure it for now. Now, take this, and let's open them up."

The pinkette's eyebrows pinched in bewilderment as she grasped the parchment within the palm of her left hand. Something just did not sit well. Naruto was in pain and tried to cover it up, hiding behind a glass smile.

With an unofficial count to three, both teams unraveled the documents at the same time. Etched onto the scrolls had been the noticeably large kanji, 'jin,' which meant 'person,' along with intricate kana and tribal graphics engraved around, in a ring-like pattern surrounding said character. It almost looked reminiscent of the Sun.

From the confused looks on the five faces and muzzle, Shikamaru and Sasuke had already figured out the mechanics of the scrolls from quick-witted observations.

'_I see,'_ the dark-eyed Uchiha surmised. _'This must be a summoning technique of some kind…'_

'_Ah,'_ Shikamaru pondered as realization dawned on him. _'Tenchi…Heaven and Earth…We have to lay out the scrolls so that the kanji are aligned in a crisscrossed pattern…'_

When smoke started to pour from the four parchments, Sasuke broke the attention of the mesmerized shinobi. "Everyone let go of the scrolls…_now_!"

Snapping out of their daze, Sakura, Naruto, Ino and Chouji tossed the scrolls far in front of them like they had just touched a hot coal.

As the smog started to increase, the greenhorn genin and nin-ken stood on edge for the dark images that started to appear from out of nowhere.

The looks easily converted from stumped to surprise when two familiar people made their presence known.

"Yo!" The burly voice spoke out as he puffed on his cigarette.

"Hey!" The second voice was a bit lighter and more optimistic than the preceding tone. "Long time, no see…"

When the smoke cleared, Naruto immediately brightened up when he saw that familiar scar across the bridge of the tanned man's face.

"Iruka-sensei!" Naruto shouted. "Why are you here!?"

Umino Iruka had to do a double take before identifying the shinobi in front of his eyes. His orbs widened a great bit. "Naruto!? What…what happened…?"

Apparently, he was at a loss for words for the moment.

The kindred chuunin noticed an odd glint in the former troublemaker's eyes before he spoke up. "I'll have to tell you later, Iruka-sensei. Just…" He stole a hidden glance to his other two teammates before his eyes landed back to his brother-like figure. "Not right now."

XXXXXXXXXX

As for Team Ten, their faces were engraved with curiosity. One of two things plagued their minds.

"Oi, Sensei," the lazy shougi-player began. "First of all, aren't chuunin designated to greet the exam takers? It is called the _Chuunin_ Selection Exams for a reason."

"Well," Asuma spoke as he rubbed the back of his scalp. "Apparently, the chuunin that was supposedly assigned to greet you had suffered from a food allergy and couldn't be here. Sadly, Oyaji didn't find a suitable replacement, so he stuck me here…" The bearded jounin grumbled under his breath as he flicked off some cigarette ash.

"Um…Asuma-sensei," Chouji cut in. "What's with the get-up?"

"Yeah, what he said," the young mind-walker added on, thumbing in the portly boy's direction but eyes on their instructor. "Did you lose a bet or something?"

As Asuma looked down at the tacky, green eyesore that he was wearing, he heavily sighed. Out of all the questions, _why_ did he have to get asked about the jumpsuit? He vowed to get Gai at a later date…and Kakashi, too. "You don't even want to know, even the half of it…"

'_But we do,'_ Team Seven thought as one, trying to fight off snickers. Leave it to their lazy sensei for getting their goat.

Iruka checked his pocket watch to indicate the time. "It appears that you all have a little more than thirty hours left, before the cutoff period." He snapped it shut, placed it back in his pocket and gave the two teams a smile. "Congratulations on making it to the next stage of the Chuunin Exams."

"You hear that, guys!? We passed! Yeah!" Naruto, with fox companion on his head, leapt about in gaiety. Sadly, for Doshaburi, he was getting awfully dizzy. If it was even imaginable, then some would have seen the little fox's face turning to a sickly green tone.

'_M-My tummy…'_

The other five chuunin hopefuls fell on their bottoms, now that they could finally relax.

Sasuke shook his head. "That guy has way too much energy for his own good."

"What a relief," Sakura softly stated.

'**Oh, hell yeah!'** Inner Sakura shouted with gusto. **'But…we're not out of the woods just yet, Pinky. There's still that chakram-throwing technique that I need to show you.'** Seeing the downtrodden look on her outward counterpart, she relaxed a little. Her Inner Will still wanted to get things done…

Sakura wanted her Inner Self to at least empathize with her current capabilities. Only but so much she could take. She had _physical_ limits, unlike the chalky outline in her head.

'**Okay, I think that you can take some…vacation time, I suppose…'**

'_Thanks, Inner Me,'_ she spoke up, very relieved. She would not want to undergo any of _her_ training regimens any time soon._ 'I would greatly appreciate it if I don't overexert myself. I think I'm comfortable with my jutsu for the moment.'_

'**Just don't get lax, lazy-ass!'**

'_Try telling that to someone with breaking points. I swear that you're such a slave driver…'_

'**Earning power through hard work isn't that fucking easy, Pinky! Senpai knew of it; Sasuke is getting to know about it. You shouldn't be, nor should you ever be content on where you are as of this moment. You should always exceed your own expectations, which is what a ninja is supposed to do.'** She shook her head.__**'Now, pay attention. I think someone is about to say something…'**

"Heh," Sasuke chuckled a bit as he came to a brief epiphany. "Iruka-sensei, what would have happened had we opened the scrolls out in the Forest of Death, during the test?"

The room grew staggeringly silent when the Uchiha's insightful inquiry was asked.

Iruka's eyebrow shot up slightly as his smile turned into a grin. "I see. You're as sharp as ever, Sasuke." The scar-faced chuunin picked up the set of scrolls that were in front of him. As he was rolling up the documents, he continued his lecture to Squads Ten and Seven. "As you may have already figured out, the rules of this test were designed to test your ability to perform the mission completely and successfully."

"So what would've happened had we broken the rules and opened the scrolls?" Shikamaru asked, carefully putting the pieces of the puzzle into place.

"As expected from the insightful intellect," Iruka remarked in a doting fashion with his fixed smile of pride. Oh, how he missed teaching these kids, but they were going off to bigger and better things. "Those exam takers would have been subjected to a knockout technique and would remain unconscious until the end of the testing period. Those were the orders given to me, as well as my other chuunin peers."

"Um, Iruka-sensei," Ino spoke up with a hand raised. "What's the meaning of the writing on the wall?" She pointed past their former instructor to the hanging poster. "And there's a word missing in it. We can't figure it out."

"Care for me to cut in, Iruka-san?" Asuma asked. "I won't mind."

With a nod from the scarred instructor, the bearded jounin snuffed out his cancer-stick before pressing on. "If you look carefully, then what you are reading is the Chuunin Oath, written by Oyaji…er, I mean, Hokage-sama." Those in attendance read the cryptic writing.

_If you lack heaven, then seek wisdom and be prepared. If you lack earth, then run into the fields and seek advantages…_

"In this paragraph, 'heaven' represents the mind, and 'earth,' the body," Asuma continued as he adjusted part of the tight-fitting jumpsuit. It was official; Gai was getting what would be coming to him…sooner or later…

What was it? He did not know, but justice would be served, along with a cold dish of revenge.

He cleared his throat and his thoughts before continuing. "In any case, 'heaven' and 'earth' represent the delicate balance between the physical you and the spiritual you. For instance, take Shikamaru here…" He pointed to his subordinate with the pineapple-shaped hairstyle. "He is strong in the Heaven realm, meaning that he has the knowledge to prepare for the missions. Regrettably, on the downside, he's lacking stamina and the drive to do so…" Shikamaru donned a sour look on his face after being called out on his weak point. "That means he must continue to train hard…if he puts more effort into it, of course…" That caused several of the shinobi to chuckle at the shougi player's expense.

"And not to be picking on anyone, look at Naruto for a brief moment." All eyes were then on the blond ninja. "He has the opposite balance that Shikamaru possesses. He has loads of stamina, but could stand to read a bit more…"

"Oi, oi!" Naruto piped up. "I read often…just not as much…" He grumbled when it was his turn to be the subject of laughter.

"If you possess a delicate equilibrium of both," Iruka started to grab the kids' attention. "Then you can succeed in the most dangerous of missions. So, in essence, missions become easier and safer through which to navigate. Those are the words that represent a true chuunin."

"Then what's the missing word in the last sentence, Iruka-sensei?" the green-eyed bookworm asked.

"Can you tell?" He held out the Heaven parchment. "Didn't you see the large character inside the summoning circle? That is what goes there. The last sentence reads, 'These rules will guide a person's extremes.'"

It was then that Iruka's tone adopted a more stern edge, meaning that what he was about to say was highly important. "These five days of survival were to test each candidate's basic abilities needed to gain the rank of chuunin. Chuunin are at the equivalent rank of military captains. You have the responsibility of guiding a team when out on missions. The inner wisdom, stamina and knowledge…These are all needed for your duties. I want you all to challenge the next step with the Chuunin Pledge in mind." After he was finished, the scarred shinobi expressed a somewhat sad smile. "That is all I have to pass on…to you and the next generation."

Noticing the determined and optimistic looks on his former students, he wanted to forewarn them about the imminent third phase, but instead, Asuma had cut in. "We've also been given a message to pass along to Teams Seven and Ten." Eyebrows were raised, indicative of the puzzled looks on the genin.

The cigarette-smoker crossed his arms over his chest, facial features impassive. "After we talked to you about the hidden meaning of the second exam phase, Hokage-sama would like to see both teams in private…and it is not a request. You are to follow us immediately. And only after that will you be able to rest up for what's ahead."

Asuma and Iruka, who offered an apologetic look to his former pupils, turned at an about-face and walked up the stairs on the leftmost side of the room.

For some apparent reason, as he and the other genin (plus nin-ken) were following the two older men, Naruto felt as if an ice cube had been dropped into the deep recesses of his stomach. Doshaburi had picked up on his master's sudden, inner anxiety.

The blond wonder was hoping that it was nothing much to worry about…

It could have just been his nerves…or the indication of very ill omen later on…

XXXXXXXXXX

(Undisclosed location in the Forest of Death Tower)

Two silent minutes later, the collective squadron of genin behind Asuma and Iruka stopped in front of a plain door within the bowels of the Tower. The subtle nervousness emanated through the entire group.

It did not take long for Sarutobi to feel the tension outside his door, much less so for the chakra signatures.

"Come in."

The tone that the Hokage had spoken snapped the chuunin hopefuls to attention. That voice commanded unquestioned reverence for someone as skilled and strong as he was.

'_I wonder who pissed him off this time…'_ Chouji thought, appetite completely diminished.

'_Naruto, I think you did it…big time,'_ Shikamaru pondered as he saw said blond, out of the corner of his eyes, sweating profusely on his brow-line. _'Yep…That's the look of a guilty conscience, all right…'_

The son of the Hokage opened the wooden door and ushered in the tight-lipped genin, fox familiar in tow.

Asuma felt as if there was still that noiseless rift between his dad and him. The break in their father-son relationship had mostly stemmed from the fact that he was naïve and chose to set out on his own journey. He wanted to experience the world in his own way.

It was at that point in his young life when he decided to join the Fire Temple's Shugonin Juunishi, a group of twelve elite warriors dedicated to protect Fire Country and her daimyo. At times, they could not stomach the presence of one another within the same room. In most cases, his 'pops' and he typically ignored one another. In rarer occurrences, the two would have a falling out on account of differences in opinion.

Nonetheless, the bearded jounin gave his father a courteous nod of acknowledgment before departing company.

"Iruka, you may leave," the Sandaime spoke up with his scanning eyes. "I'll speak with you shortly."

With a respectful bow to the wizened Fire Shadow, the scarred chuunin stepped out of the room and closed it without a sound.

Noting to himself that he had the required teams assembled, Sarutobi flashed through five handseals before the room briefly flashed in white. The Silent Barrier Technique was set in place.

The Sandaime's trained eye filtered through the genin until his orbs briefly halted on Naruto's cerulean ones in a stern glare, before resuming his panoramic sight. The quick glance toward the blond meant that he was in deep trouble after all was said and done. It was that telltale 'I will talk to you later' kind of look.

"I can tell by your looks that you're wondering why you have been summoned by me this late in the evening," Sarutobi Hiruzen began while keeping his voice steady and even. Inwardly, he was moved by the fact that they had not been looking away from him. It showed their attentiveness, even though it was in the dead of the night.

He clasped together his hands into a steeple-like pattern under his chin before he continued. "What you all have witnessed in the Forest of Death is…well, _was_ supposed to be confidential and classified in nature." He looked at his surrogate grandchild. "No pun intended."

"Hokage-sama," Sakura said as she shakily raised her hand. "If I may, Sasuke-kun and I knew of it, but…this person…never said as to where did he gain this ability…"

"I was getting to that, Sakura-san," Sarutobi noted. "The person of note in this room was supposedly barred from using said ability or even mentioning it in front of an enemy…" The wizened man's eyes quickly cut to a nervous Naruto before resuming his all-encompassing gaze. He could tell that it was obvious as to who was the 'seemingly unnamed individual.'

Sarutobi kept his expression neutral before continuing, even though it was a bit amusing to see Naruto squirm under pressure. "Well, Naruto, care to explain yourself?"

"Uh…" Naruto timidly looked around at the wondering looks from his fellow genin peers. For someone that craved attention, he looked like a Nara deer caught in the crossfire of shinobi weaponry, now that the spotlight was on him. "Well…" He scratched his cheek while trying to regain a bit of his composure. "A relative of mine, somewhere down the family line, was of the Mori no Senju. I don't know how, or when, the dormant gene activated, but it did."

"If you now know that you're a relative of the Senju clan, then would you know your true heritage, then?" Ino asked with wide eyes, a pair of which had been similar to the sets looking at the blond genin. "Say, for instance, your parents?"

"No, not really," Naruto answered with a guarded inflection. It was neither a whole truth nor a whole lie. It was sort of in between. Sure, he knew about his parents, but he did not know them on a personal or intimate level, like his fellow peers did with their own.

"Che," Shikamaru sucked his teeth, hands shoved in his pockets. "Who would've thought that the 'dead last' was a relative of Senju Hashirama? Or even Senju Tobirama, the Nidaime, at that?"

'_So that's how it is, huh?'_ Sasuke mused as he half-glared at the enigma that was his teammate. He clenched his fists slightly. Once again, it was one point added to how 'special' the 'dead last' had been.

"Now that the issue at hand has come out in the open," Sarutobi spoke up, shaking those who were thinking. "Let me pose to you a question. Have any of you figured out the true purpose of the Chuunin Selection Examinations? Why do we have a joint exam with our allies?"

He was answered with silence, along with a set of looks ranging from questioning to utmost confusion.

"Ano…" Sakura piped up after the pregnant pause ensued. "Did it not say in our textbooks that these exams were used as a means to 'maintain good relations among allied nations' and 'to heighten the level of shinobi?'"

"Well, those are some decent reasons to hold the exams, but that is not the true answer," the Sandaime responded. "Rather, this exam is the true meaning of war amongst allies."

"What do you mean, Hokage-sama?" Ino cut in with her own query. "I still don't get it."

Hiruzen gingerly sat up in the cushions of his chair and got comfortable. Part of his coziness was disenchanted by a few loud pops in his back. "If you all look back at history, our neighbors and we fought each other on several occasions. Eventually, each nation decided that, in order to preserve manpower and talent, victors would be decided on a series of tests of valor, rather than incessantly waging war on the battlefields. It was then that the Chuunin Selection Exams had first begun."

"So, is this exam mainly a contest for bragging rights, or something?" Chouji asked. "Is it something where you place the best of the best on showcase?"

"To be straightforward, yes, it is exactly that," the Third Fire Shadow responded in kind. "However, we try to avoid stating it in that particular fashion…"

"Something's off, Old Man," Naruto spoke up after his uncharacteristic calm. His tone indicated that he was a bit irritated. "To me, it feels off-topic, and I have no idea why you are bringing this up, along with my…abilities…" The blond kid tapered off on that word, almost as if it felt foreign or taboo. He tried to piece together the link, but it was to no avail.

"I guess you're still 'that' Naruto," Shikamaru butted in, taking a jab at the bewhiskered genin.

Avoiding the stony glare from Naruto, the lazy genius continued. "Looking at the big picture, the exam is demonstrating the military might of each shinobi village. With that thought in mind, if you display an ability that was thought to have been lost, then the amount of revenue and missions would increase for Hi no Kuni. Isn't that what you were aiming for, Hokage-sama?"

The Sandaime made a mental note to watch his son's charge, Nara Shikamaru. That kid had the potential for greatness despite his apparent nonchalance when it came to scoring average on most of the academic tests.

"Very perceptive, Shikamaru-san," he remarked. "Even though it would bring more missions and proceeds to Konoha, I specifically denied Naruto the privilege of using the Mokuton trait…"

"But—"

He held up a hand to halt his surrogate grandson's protest. "There is a difference between a right and a privilege, Naruto. You may be _privileged_ to being an heir to the Mokuton ability, but that does not give you the _right_ to display said skill openly and without forethought into the matter. I make that decision at your discretion and good judgment. Remember what I had mentioned to you several weeks ago."

Naruto mellowed out and relented to the old man's reasoning, albeit with a spoiled scowl on his face. He crossed his arms across his chest in partial indignation.

"In any case, where was I?" he mused outwardly, more to himself than to those around him. "Ah, yes. I would never exploit Naruto's talents, even if it would garner greater glory, for he has been through a lot…"

He paused momentarily as a sad smile graced his wrinkled face. "Like all my beloved family that is the Hidden Leaf, I would never use any of you as a means to an end." The smile became warm before it slipped a little. "I'm not mad at you, Naruto, and I hope that you know that. I will let this incident slip by, due to circumstances beyond your team's control.

"However…" Hiruzen adopted a more serious tone which made the genin on edge, like the last time. This was coming from the Hokage, not the kindhearted Sarutobi Hiruzen that the kids loved. "This reinforces my previous order with you, Uzumaki Naruto, genin of Konohagakure no Sato. You are to never, under any situation from henceforth, utilize your Mokuton powers. You will not use said ability until you have attained the equivalent level of chuunin or if I pass on, into the afterlife. Is that clear?"

Naruto quickly saluted before stammering out, "C-crystal, sir! B-but even if I could now use Mokuton, I can't as of this moment." Seeing the incredulous look pass through the old man's visage, Naruto took the time to cover his tracks. "I'll discuss what I mean at a later time, Saru-jijii."

Sakura jabbed Naruto into his ribs. "Where are your manners!?" she barked under her breath. He shrugged it off and quietly addressed to her that it was no big deal.

'_Calling him Old Man Monkey to his face like that?'_ Ino thought with surprise. A quick grin came and went. _'The kid's got spunk. I'll give him _that_ much…'_

Sarutobi inhaled and exhaled deeply to soothe an oncoming headache. "Very well, then." He glanced from genin to genin before he pressed onward. "The ANBU that were with you all at the time have been sworn to secrecy regarding this matter, and they will be dealt with severely if they freely speak about it. That is my mandate that I will pass on to you, Teams Seven and Ten. No one is to speak of what transpired here. The dire consequences that hold for them will hold for you. Is that understood?"

A chorus of "Hai, Hokage-sama!" erupted from the six greenhorns, along with one yip from the fox familiar.

"Furthermore, Team Seven, I shall notify your jounin-sensei regarding a matter that should be thoroughly investigated. I'm sure that you know of it." The Hokage decided to carefully skirt around the business pertaining to the Ten no Juin on Uchiha Sasuke's neck, mainly because of another team present.

Each genin of the seventh squad looked to one another before they nodded in concordance.

"With that said, you are dismissed for the evening. Rest up, and I will see you all in a little over a day."

Before everyone filed out, he rose from his seat and quickly detained Naruto with a soft hand on his shoulder. "Mind if we have a more…private chat, along with Iruka-san? He was apparently worried about you while you were out there. Along with that, you will tell me why it is that you can't use…you know…"

'_Just my luck…'_

Naruto sighed within his oncoming yawn. "Fine. How long will it take, Ojiisan?"

"Not long, since you obviously need your rest. I can see bags forming under your eyes." He gave a throaty chuckle as his eyes crinkled with amusement.

Naruto huffed. "Are you making fun of me?"

XXXXXXXXXX

(Tower, 4:00 am)

The blue-eyed genin trudged through the empty, dimly lit hallways, with equally haggard fox-hound in tow.

The blond shinobi was worn out from trying to explain things to his previous sensei and brother figure. It took Iruka a while to calm down after he found out about Naruto communing with his tenant, along with some relieved aid from Old Man Hokage.

In addition, the wizened Fire Shadow told the young lad that he, along with Haku-chan, was under his protection from his advisors and clan heads. Had he shown off in front of them, then he would have basically been…

How did Saru-jijii phrase it?

'_What did he say? Milking me for my seed? Or something like that…'_

The point was moot; his word was law, since he held absolute authority, alongside the daimyo of Fire Country.

It was even more political poppycock that confused the already-befuddled genin. Since the rest of the lecture was boring, Naruto tuned it out effortlessly.

Thank the kami for a one-tracked mind and a need for sleep…

Feeling along the edges of the wall, he first rubbed against some indents that felt like the engraving on a Konoha hitai-ate. Later, Naruto ran his fingers alongside a surface that had not been consistent with the texture of what he had been feeling. Naruto reached down to quietly turn the knob in order for him to enter.

Upon breaching the entrance, while creeping in silently, he took a quick sniff around to smell out anyone that was hostile within the room. Luckily enough, the boy did not pick up any scents of antagonism, but he noticed some very familiar but unidentifiable odors. Due to lack of forty winks, he could not remember if his life depended on it.

'_Well, time to get comfortable, Dosha-chan,'_ he softly said through mental link as he noiselessly shut the door.

'_Ano…shishou, do you think it's reasonable to enter in like this?'_ the fox kit asked innocently. _'Isn't this called…intrusion?'_

'_I sense several, peaceful aurae about, and I think that they're fellow Konoha shinobi. So, it should be okay, even though I didn't ask for permission.'_ He pondered a bit, tapping his chin with his forefinger, before replying telepathically. _'Let's just not worry about it. Everything should be fine.'_

Doshaburi decided not to comment, for he felt that his master would not adhere to reason. It would be his hide in hot water when the morning came.

Naruto cautiously felt around in the inky darkness in an attempt to locate a futon and managed to do so, without waking up anyone in the occupied chamber.

While getting comfortable, he heard a faint rustling of the covers and assumed that it was his little companion that was getting adjusted. He reached over and rubbed on the 'fuzzy' coat.

"Good night, Dosha-chan," Naruto whispered.

"Good night, shishou," Doshaburi murmured back, but his voice came from behind the blond shinobi.

"Wait…Dosha-chan?" Naruto's eyes came close to bugging out when his head jerked quickly to the conjectured area of where his foxy comrade curled up.

"Yes, shishou? What's the matter?" the fox kit curiously queried.

"If you're behind me…" Naruto panned onto the soft material, even though he could not see it. "Then who…er, what the hell am I stroking?" It felt warm and that was most certain to the blue-eyed boy.

Doshaburi gave off an obscure shrug, even though his master could not see it. "I don't know, Master. It could just be…" His muzzle parted as a stifled yawn managed to break free. "…your imagination. Let's just g-get some sleep."

It did not take long for Naruto to fall into the arms of sweet slumber, for he was very, very exhausted, in both mind and body.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Tower, 10:00 am)

"Oi, oi! What the hell do you think you're doing!?"

"Grrr….arf!"

No sooner had the prone figure had not heard those words, a swift kick was administered to his backside. Feeling the intense throbbing surrounding his posterior region, Naruto quickly came to from his peaceful sleep. He hoped to the kami that he would not go off on whoever woke him, or he would pummel him into the ground for another rude awakening. If it were a female, then he would just let it slide as just being particularly crabby.

Grumbling with eyes shut, he shifted his head to the supposed location of his yet to be identified assailant.

"What the hell do you want this time, bastard?" Naruto groused.

As soon as he popped open one eye, he noticed three visages: one feral, frowned face; one full of whitened fur; and another that was enshrouded by tinted lenses and a high-brimmed collar.

"Oh," Naruto evenly uttered. "Hey, Shino…" His eyes narrowed when he turned to Kiba. "Dog-Breath…Akamaru…"

"You must have some nerve doing that, Kitsune-kun!" the dog-using ninja growled out.

"Doing what?" Naruto asked innocently. However, his patience was wearing very thin…very quickly. He detested ambiguity; being left out of the proverbial loop. "And where's Hinata-chan? Shouldn't she be with you guys?"

The answers that he received were not verbal; nothing more than a physical gesture. Still glowering, Kiba only pointed a bit past Naruto to whatever the blond was holding.

True to form, Naruto followed Kiba's extended forefinger to the prone figure lying in the same futon that he occupied.

The blond's mouth did not function properly after he noticed that he had been holding the sleeping Hyuuga maiden. His thoughts, on the other hand, were going one kilometer per minute that contradicted the state of his tongue-tied lips.

'_Oh shit…oh shit…oh shit…I'm sunk…'_

"Did that answer your question, 'dead last'?" Kiba rumbled. Even though Naruto and he had been familiar with one another in the Shinobi Academy, he was a few seconds close to decking the knuckleheaded enigma. It was due to good fortune and Shino holding his shoulder that prevented him from following through. "If I could get my hands on you, then you'd so be dead, right now…"

Naruto thought that he heard something akin to a bored sigh before the bug-host spoke up.

"Please ignore the ramblings of my…flustered teammate, Uzumaki-san. He meant nothing by it," Shinto commented as he pushed up his glasses at the bridge. "I am certain that this is all just one, big misconstruction based upon our inept judgment. My helpers have not picked up on anything that needed to be called into question…"

"Huh?" Oftentimes, Naruto hated to interpret Shino's vocabulary, for it had taken a while to understand what was said. Instead, why did he not say, 'It was all a big misunderstanding and his bugs didn't pick up any funny business?'

'_Wait a minute…What's his angle?'_

The shades around his glasses appeared to have darkened as a slight edge came to his voice, which had Naruto feel a bit uneasy. "Nevertheless, in the event that you did, in fact, do something to Hinata, then we will act accordingly on account of her honor and safety. You ruin her reputation; we break your bones and self-worth. Do you understand, Uzumaki-san?"

Naruto swiftly nodded and immediately removed himself from the daybed to prevent further, incriminating evidence against him.

Out of the entire squabble between the three shinobi, Naruto noted that his dark-haired friend was still out like a light. "Um…Why is Hinata-chan still asleep?" he asked, totally mystified.

"She trained herself to the bone yesterday, as if you couldn't probably tell," Kiba remarked before grunting. He shook his head. "I don't know what got into her, but she was…strangely determined. Striving for what, I have no idea, and I'm her teammate. Anyway, I bet that she wouldn't wake up, even if an exploding tag were to go off in the area."

"Hinata should be up some time in the afternoon, taking into account her stamina and chakra levels, for the current moment," Shino directly added, answering Naruto's unasked inquiry.

"Okay. Well, when she wakes up, can you tell her that I need her help with something?"

"It better not be for what I think it is, pervert!" Kiba narrowed his eyes at his blue-eyed peer.

"You got some nerve telling me that, Inu-Ibuki! I can keep myself in check, unlike someone I know that slightly drools when he sees Kurenai-sensei…" The conceit practically rolled off that casual comment made by Naruto.

"What the…?" Kiba sputtered. "How the hell do you know that, Kitsune-kun!?"

"Well, I know my sources, and I'm not telling."

It was complete malarkey on Naruto's part. He offhandedly guessed from out of nowhere and hit one of the canine-using ninja's secrets without previous foreknowledge. It would _so_ go under blackmail material for later.

"All flippant banter aside, what I said earlier still holds, Naruto," the bug-host intervened, completely deflating the lighthearted moment. "Do not forget it."

"Okay, I get it. I'm sorry for giving you any trouble. If I did, then I didn't mean to offend. Hinata is my friend, and I would never, in any way, try to harm her or put her into very complicated situations. Please forgive me for my oblivious rudeness." Naruto added a ninety-degree bow for emphasis.

"Whoa there! No need to be all formal, Naruto," Kiba commented. "Just go on about your business before I change my mind about pummeling you." He paused before a wicked sneer was fixed onto his face. "Actually, I ought to channel that aggression when I'm beating you to a pulp in the next round."

"Heh," Naruto snorted before haughtily rubbing a knuckle against his pectorals. "As if you can overthrow the great Uzumaki Naruto-sama."

"You're thinking too highly of yourself. I'm going to knock you into next week, in order for you to know your place."

"Yeah, we'll see…" Naruto cleared his throat. "In any case, I must meet up with my team. I'll summon a shadow clone outside the door to escort Hinata-chan to where I'll be in the meantime. I bid you gentlemen a good day." Maintaining his dignity, he walked away. In his mind, it was a forestalled crisis. While facing away from the two ninja, Naruto sighed in relief.

'_I told you that something would happen…'_

'_Not another word, Dosha-chan…'_

'_You set yourself up f-for that one, shishou.'_ Doshaburi's teeth could be seen from far away when his muzzle was etched with jollity at the expense of his master. If he could, then the little vulpine would have been snickering.

'_No cherry shampoo for you, then.'_ Naruto crossed his arms against his chest for accenting his claim.

That immediately caused the ocher fuzz to look aghast. His mind had been read. It was a blatant violation of his privacy…

Now it was Naruto's turn to smirk.

'_I handled myself well, thank you very much…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

(Tower, 2:30 pm—Final Day of the Second Phase)

After meeting up with Sasuke and Sakura in the room next door, they told Naruto that they should recuperate and tend to wounds and such like for the day, instead of expending energy. In short, each member of Team Seven had decided to tend to his or her own devices.

XXXXXXXXXX

The lone Uchiha opted to meditate in order to calm his nerves for what was unknowingly ahead. After all the chaos that ensued in the Forest of Death, he could utilize the time for a well-deserved respite.

Clearing his mind of all whimsy and thought, he closed his dark orbs and began to feel in tune with the flow of the working mechanisms of the world.

He scrunched together his eyes after hearing Doshaburi scratch his coat, albeit faintly.

How on earth did _he_ have to cub-sit _Naruto's_ fox?

_(Flashback)_

"_I need you to watch over Dosha-chan, if that's fine with you," Naruto said with semi-pleading eyes._

_The lone Uchiha opened one of his charcoal-hued orbs. "Isn't he _your_ responsibility, dobe?" Sasuke asked, completely uninterested._

"_Isn't he also a teammate?" Naruto reasoned. "Teammates watch out for one another, right?"_

"_You still haven't answered the question, idiot," Sasuke retorted. This time, he was slightly annoyed._

_Totally dodging a response, the bewhiskered genin thought of a work-around solution to appease both parties. "I'm sure he won't make too much of a fuss. It'll be like he's never there to begin with…" In fact, Naruto needed the alone time. What he wanted to work on did not really require his furry partner. It was just retraining in some basic fundamentals, and his pet companion knew about it beforehand. The ocher fuzz was delighted to have more recovery time; it was welcomed._

"…_Whatever," Sasuke answered after a resolute minute. He closed his eye to resume his meditation. "But if he gives me hell, then I'm coming for you. Got it?"_

"_I get it."_

"_Good."_

_(End Flashback)_

'_Maybe I'm getting too soft…'_ he thought. _'What are my priorities as of now? Where do they lie?'_

It was time to sort out the weeds of his life.

XXXXXXXXXX

In Sakura's case, her Inner Will practically coaxed her into some light training…by her standards, of which were very high. This regimen was considerably light compared to the other times that she trained on her own. As promised, her inner ego stressed to her on the importance of properly throwing a chakram.

'_Okay, I got a question.'_

'**Fire away, Pinky,'** her mental construct said with a very wide smirk…almost too friendly, in a way. **'Whatcha need to know?'**

'_How do I throw these things without cutting me? It seems as dangerous to me as it is to who I'm facing. Shouldn't kunai or shuriken be more capable of doing the job?'_

Her Inner Will hummed a bit before answering. **'Well, with the correct technique, you wouldn't have to worry much about that. But, in any case, let's not get sidetracked.'** Sakura stifled a moan, thinking that she was never off-topic, before Inner-Sakura continued.** 'There are three ways with how to effectively throw the chakrams without causing injury to the one flinging the projectile.'**

The green-eyed kunoichi could see her inward counterpart tick off points with her chalky digits. **'One: you can throw it similar to a Frisbee; two: you can toss the chakram open-handed…it's pretty much the inverted way of the first option; and three: the one which I find extraordinary is that you can twirl it on your finger before letting it loose. The third method would seem to be the hardest to do, even though it would be that style that yields the best results. That means that the third way produces more power when you flick it.'** She shrugged. **'But, meh, pick and choose which suits you best.'**

The pink-haired girl looked at her bladed weapons before her eyes glassed over in bewilderment. She did not want to give up, because if she got this down, then this would be one step closer to being stronger.

She closed her eyes and evenly thought, weighing out all of her decisions on the style that felt appropriate to her.

After a few minutes, she stood up and got to work. There was not going to be any progress done if she sat around all day.

XXXXXXXXXX

Naruto wandered around to find an unoccupied area. Much to his dismay, he ran into the Suna group, sans Gaara, while trying to locate a place to train, away from unbidden eyes.

Silence enveloped the trio of shinobi for quite some time, due to the heavy tension among them.

Kankurou was the one to break the weighty serenity. "So…what do you want, shrimp?"

"Well," Naruto piped up, trying to gather his thoughts. He scratched the back of his scalp on account of that being one of his nervous ticks. "I thought that we kind of started off on the wrong foot when we first encountered. How about we clear the air between our countries? I'll apologize on the behalf of my squad if, and only if, you express regret for provoking confrontation by assaulting one of our Academy students."

"Not going to happen, kid," Kankurou flatly stated with narrowed eyes. "And you had some nerve to hit me in the face with that Doton jutsu."

"I unconsciously acted on account of how I had been training. That was all…"

"Pay no mind to my hotheaded brother," the blonde (Temari, Naruto recollected) said. From how she presented herself in Naruto's being there, he felt a confident aura radiating off her. "Since he's too proud to admit that he was wrong, I'll go ahead and say it. We're sorry for giving you a bit of a hassle. I gave him a forewarning, but he didn't pay any mind to little old me." She gave Kankurou a self-satisfied smirk. The puppet-holder looked away and grunted as if he had breathed in foul air.

"You know, Temari-san, you're kind of cool." At that moment, Temari raised an eyebrow to her fellow blond. Who the hell said 'cool' anymore? "Unlike that prick with the painted face…" Kankurou snorted once more when the blond genin pointed in his direction. Temari tried her best to fight off another grin. "I'll express my regret at behest of Team Seven of Konoha." He offered the Suna kunoichi with an elegant bow. "By the way, where's your other teammate, the redhead? What's his name?" The blond tapped a finger against his bottom lip before his face lit up in realization. "Oh, that's right! Gaara…"

"He's near the roof. We decided to give him enough space."

'_Even though he's a bit unstable,'_ Temari thought, keeping that snippet of information undisclosed.

Although she carried herself in a calm, cool, and collected manner, she was emotionally troubled on the inside. The iron fan-wielder was a little nervous due to the fact she was fraternizing with the 'enemy.' She was a bit concerned for Gaara's well-being. On top of those issues, Temari wanted to compile some data on this unknown element in front of her, but at the moment, she could not tell how strong this Uzumaki Naruto kid was. The only thing that she had known was that the boy could use an earth-based technique and had above-average senses. Everything else was riddled in the gray area.

"Okay. I guess I'll see you later, then, Temari-san. I offer the best of luck to you and your team in the future."

After the pointy-eared blond departed from their company, the Suna puppeteer looked at his sister with a lifeless glare. "Weren't you going to back me up on this one?"

Temari shrugged her shoulders before turning away to polish her iron fan. "You gotta admit that you're wrong, eventually." She heaved a quiet sigh. "No one is perfect, you know."

XXXXXXXXXX

(Secluded area, 3:46 pm)

'_All right…Time to train…__**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**__!'_

With the dual set of crossing, half-Tora seals, three duplicates of the blue-eyed shinobi appeared from light wisps of smoke.

"Okay, guys, you know what to do!" Naruto shouted while gaining momentum to the wall.

"Right!"

The replications followed soon after their creator.

From the eighty-foot-high partition, Naruto and his clones managed to stick onto said wall up until the fiftieth. After that, his control on his energy source wavered, causing his duplicates and him to fall together, in an unceremonious heap onto cold linoleum tiles. The shadow clones cushioned the original's impact, but at their sacrifice.

By Naruto's quick summation of how his control was, compared to how it has been now, he had come to a brief and demoralizing conclusion…

His management over his reserves had been reduced by roughly thirty-eight percent…give or take several hundredths on account of marginal error.

In shorter terms, he had regressed to the point of basic tree climbing tactics.

Naruto held back a frustrating sigh, along with a string of obscenities that would, in essence, get him nowhere.

Since the Forest of Death was out of the question, the blue-eyed genin thought that using a stationary object, like that damn wall in front of him, as a veritable substitute for a tree in said exercise would have been a good idea.

Naruto mopped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand. What was he doing incorrectly?

Luckily, he had someone that could answer that potential inquiry. It was by good fortune that Hinata, who found the room with little effort at all, was with him at the current time, silently watching him like an eagle with her Byakugan.

He still could not fathom that fact that he was…fondling her from the night before. Due to that, when she first arrived, he could not keep the blood from rushing to his face. She had asked him what was the matter, but Naruto stammered through an excuse that he was experiencing a bit of vertigo. It had been a touch of irony on his part, to say the least. Normally, _Hinata_ was the shy one.

On the down side, it felt as if his entire life had been one cover-up after the next with lies, back to back…

In any case, he shook those rootless thoughts from his head and focused on the matter at hand.

"What's my problem, Hinata-chan?" he asked without looking at her. "It's like all my prior training had been all for nothing…" That would mean that he would have to redo water walking at some point. He frowned while rubbing his scalp.

The Hyuuga maiden deactivated her doujutsu and looked at him with warm eyes, even though he could not see it, due to the fact that he was facing the wall.

"Your chakra coils seemed to have expanded by about one millimeter, when comparing them now to then, several weeks ago," she softly said. "That shift must've caused most of your problems." She paused to trigger her eyes once more. "I also s-seem to notice…some swirls of…r-red chakra in your system." Hinata walked up a bit and stood over a wide-eyed Naruto with a small blush on her face. She cutely tilted her head to the side. "Naruto-kun, normal chakra is generally blue in coloration." It was then that worry started to creep into her voice. "Is there anything that you want to talk about? Anything at all?"

"No, none," the blue-eyed boy answered with slight hesitation as he stood. "It could be an inherent defect, or something. It may be a rare occurrence, that's all." In a way, it was rather dishonorable, by his set of values, to tell boldfaced fibs to those he held as very dear to him. He felt disgusted with himself…

'**It is best to conceal the hurtful truth, kid.'**

'_Why now out of all times, Kyuubi-sensei?'_

'**I told you, and I will say it once more: for the last time, I'm not your teacher, brat,'** the giant spirit fox deadpanned. **'You're correct in withholding your secrets. There's no point in feeling bad for acting selfish.'**

"Naruto-kun, what's wrong?" Hinata asked as she saw her Sunshine's brow crease as if he had bitten into a sour lemon. As if on a dare, she slowly moved her face to his in curiosity.

"Huh?" Naruto asked. He was unaware of the closeness between Hinata and his countenances. "Gah!" Finally realizing the proximity, he rushed back several paces. "How'd you get so close?"

"…" The Hyuuga maiden poked together her forefingers before she responded. She found the floor oddly interesting to gaze upon. "…Y-You spaced out for several seconds, Naruto-kun."

"Oh, sorry about that. My bad," he said with that lopsided grin. "So, Hinata-chan, what can I do to fix my dilemma?"

"Um…" The shy Hyuuga considered the possibilities for trying to restore 'balance' within a body that had expanded chakra coils. She could not come up with any solutions that could normalize the body's chakra circulatory system to a state of homeostasis.

On the other hand, she weighed the option for him to enhance the chakra output to the size of his widened energy channels. He could try that route.

'_I can help him. I can help Naruto-kun…'_ Her heart fluttered on account of her growing confidence.

"You could…um…produce enough chakra that is proportional to the size of your network." Seeing a confused look on his face, she tried to explain in further detail. She then felt a little self-conscious that she had her blond knight's undivided attention. "Um…What I'm trying to say is this: the ratio of harnessing chakra to the available potential in the body is one to one. However, you're only using whatever control you had _before_ your sudden mishap, w-whatever it was. The ratio that you c-currently have is one to two…or three, given the amount of chakra you need when calling forth ninjutsu."

"Is it just because I'm trying to hold back too much of my energy when attempting jutsu?"

"S-Sort of," she vaguely answered. "It's like attempting to force a large volume of water through a small pipe; the volume of water being your chakra and the small pipe being your forced restraint. You…um…have to let more of your chakra naturally flow; instead of forcing it all back. Accommodate to your new reserves. That's all there is to it, I think." A small smile graced her face.

Simmering on that thought, he could not find any flaw to it. In fact, given his current control, it could increase it by another five to seven percent…or, possibly (but stretching it), ten percent!

It was worth a shot, after all. What else could there be to lose?

'**Let's see…your pants, your pride, your ability to mold chakra, your limbs…I can keep going, you know…'**

'_Sarcasm not needed right now, bastard fox.'_

'**Now **_**that**_** is the Naruto I have come to know.'** Naruto could see his occupant's toothy smirk, much to his chagrin.

"All right," Naruto spoke after a brief bicker between his spiritual tenant and him. "This time, I think you saved my ass, Hinata-chan. I guess this is repayment for helping you with boosting your ninjutsu skills, right?"

Hinata meekly nodded. "It's…um…the least I could do for you, Naruto-kun. That's what…friends are for, right?" She almost let slip what she truly felt about the blond enigma in front of her. He always seemed to put everyone around him at ease with his carefree attitude, among other quirks. She had let down her guard and was practically vulnerable to spilling the beans. On the other hand, her fears overrode her falling, mental barriers and allowed her to keep herself in check.

In due time, perhaps, she would tell him, but not now.

He displayed one of his sunny smiles while thumping his chest. Said action caused his petite friend to chuckle. "Right! We help out other friends if they're in trouble or in need of assistance." He turned to face the wall. "I'll try what you said for the next couple of hours, if there may be a slight improvement. It's okay if you leave or stay. It doesn't matter to me."

Summoning around five replications, Naruto set to work to restore a bit of his lost chakra control, while Hinata chose to be a spectator during his impromptu regimen.

XXXXXXXXXX

(10:00 pm)

'_Damn…where did the time go?'_ the bewhiskered kid thought as he moved to the room where his comrades were.

Hinata had gone a while ago to eat and rest up for the next day.

Naruto took more time than his projected schedule…in between snack breaks, of course. Fortuitously, the training provided fruitful results.

With the aid of his Kage Bunshin, he managed to restore six percent of his 'default' chakra control (as predicted), dropping the percentage of error to about thirty-two percent from its original status, after the Kyuubi tweaked the seal.

He still had a long way to progress, though. He mentally kicked himself for flaunting his power, because it was on account of that incident that took away part of his inherited traits.

At any rate, after a few trial runs with testing out techniques, he managed to call forth the necessary chakra for elemental manipulation in the categories of Water and Wind Releases. Earth-based ninjutsu (excluding the Inner Decapitation Technique) still was not readily available, no matter how hard the blond tried. That further connected to the lack of control required to harness together two elements, making the ability to generate ice and wood close to impossible.

To sum it up, even though some of his powers were taken away, Naruto still had a loaded repertoire on which to fall back. He held some aces up his sleeve; instead of relying on reckless taijutsu, he considered himself well-rounded with fending off assaults and delivering them up close or from a substantial distance. Per usual, the realm of genjutsu was never his area of expertise. However, he resolved to compensate for his lack of illusions by being adequate to proficient in ninja arts and body-to-body techniques. That would all pan out in training for later.

As he walked into the resting lodge, he noticed that Sasuke was sprawled across his futon, disheveled sheets and all, with drool pouring down the side of his open mouth. His fox kit was curled up, on top of the raven-haired recluse.

Naruto shook his head, wishing that he had a camera to take a candid shot of the 'flawless' Uchiha.

In the next daybed was Sakura. He noticed several gashes across her forearms, albeit very minor. Just like the aloof bastard, his kunoichi teammate was down for the count, too, but with tousled hair.

Once again, sweet dreams would come quickly to the blond shinobi when he plopped in his rightful mattress.

Before he fell asleep, he caught a whiff of his underarms…

In the morning, he would need a very hot shower…with a lot of soap.

XXXXXXXXXX

(2:20 pm—Next Day)

Mitarashi Anko was in a meeting with the Hokage before someone buzzed in on one of the monitors, diverting her attention.

"_Anko-sama, we have confirmed that twenty-one shinobi have passed the second test,"_ the chuunin guard explained._ "In accordance with the rules, for the first time in five years, we will begin preparations for an intermediate preliminary before the third phase of the test. The second phase to the Chuunin Exam is now complete."_ The monitor shut off in a whir of static and white noise.

"Anko-san, we'll continue the exam as planned," Sarutobi stated. He looked at Anko's current state. Since Orochimaru was still at-large, her mark started to react in a negative fashion. It was with his aid that the pain was alleviated from the lady snake-charmer's nape. "We shall stay cautious of Orochimaru's movements. I am certain that he is still lurking about."

"Right, Hokage-sama."

XXXXXXXXXX

(2:30 pm)

It was crowded in the main chamber of the Tower. The chuunin proctors, jounin-sensei and the Hokage were lined up in front a large set of hands clasped into the Hitsuji hand seal.

Anko ruffled through her amethyst hair and scoped out the potential candidates. She was mildly surprised. She wanted to cut the numbers in half; however, she was expecting single digits, like nine (or even better, six) candidates instead of twenty-one. She supposed that Ibiki was right; there was a good crop of potential chuunin amidst the assembled shinobi.

The lady snake summoner adjusted her headset. "First off, congratulations on passing the second test!" she boomed.

Off to the sidelines, some of the jounin were talking among themselves…

XXXXXXXXXX

"Well, well, well," Maito Gai spoke enthusiastically. "I would never think to say this, but…" He gave two of his peers a pair of thumbs up, along with that flashy smile. "Kurenai-san, Asuma-san, you two look most certainly youthful!"

Asuma held himself in check by fiddling with his lighter. He was mostly laid back, but the green jumpsuit soured his overall mood. "When are we allowed to take off these…things, Gai?" he asked through clenched teeth.

"If your team displays the most exuberance during this next phase by winning their bouts, then you are allowed to remove the jumpsuits after it is over," the eccentric jounin answered. "I wouldn't see why not, for they are most certainly vibrant and form-fitting. Isn't that right, Kakashi?"

"Hm?" Kakashi turned a bored eye to Gai. The ashen-haired shinobi tuned out most of Gai's soliloquies over time. "Did you say something?"

The Noble Green Beast of Konoha began to rave and rant about 'hip attitudes' and 'being so cool' that it got on his nerves.

Kurenai thought how unfair that would be, but she decided to not vocalize her opinion and cross her arms over her bust. She would maintain her sense of dignity, even though she felt more exposed in her current attire than her regular style of dress. The genjutsu mistress despised the occasional, uninvited leer of perversion from a handful of her shinobi peers.

She turned to see her subordinates within the group of twenty-one and noticed that something was…off…

'_Akamaru is acting strange…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Sure enough, the white canine was trying his best to hide within his master's coat. Kiba assumed that it was that Suna redhead. The kid was essentially leaking bloodlust.

Doshaburi was not faring any better than his alabaster-furred counterpart. He was nestled beside Naruto's leg. He, too, was a bit spooked due to the energy and tension surrounding them.

'_Don't worry, Dosha-chan. It'll be all right,'_ Naruto told him.

The dark-haired avenger took several glances around. _'Heh…I can't say that I'm getting a good feeling about this…'_

Anko boomed, which caused all errant thought to cease. "Listen carefully. Hokage-sama will explain the third test."

The Sandaime Hokage administered a rehashing of what he had told Teams Seven and Ten in one of the secluded Tower offices.

The Selection Examinations consisted of a multifaceted affair comprised into one event. Not only did it allow genin to become chuunin, but it was also a matter of maintaining the prestige of the country.

The third phase would be held in front of influential individuals and supporting leaders that made up the shinobi clientele. They would, in essence, be the overseers of the battles. If the strength of a particular hidden village is clear, then said civilization would gather more attention, which meant more missions and more wealth. Conversely, if a country was viewed as weak, then it would receive lesser patrons.

Adding onto that, it would send a political message to the outsiders watching on how 'strong' the shinobi from a hidden village were.

"Yeah, but why!?" Kiba asked out loud. "Why do we have to risk our lives in battle!?"

The Hokage's demeanor remained unchanged. "The strength of the country is the strength of the village, and the strength of the village is the strength of the shinobi. A shinobi's true spirit is born only through life-risking battle."

Seeing the baffled looks, Sarutobi continued his lecture. "This exam is a place to see each country's strength as well as showing off your individual strength. It only has meaning because lives are at risk, and that is why those that have come before you have fought in the Chuunin Exam, for this meaningful dream…"

Tenten voiced her concern. "But, then, why do you say stuff about it being for 'friendship'?"

"As I mentioned at the start, I do not want you to confuse the purpose of this event," Sarutobi calmly answered. "Losing life and establishing balance is the shape of amity in the shinobi world."

Hiruzen's eyes narrowed imperceptibly. "Now, before we begin the third phase of the examination, I will tell you one more thing. This is not just a test, but a life-risking battle with your dreams and country's reputation on the line."

"I don't care what it is," Gaara said without expression. "Just hurry up and tell us what this life-risking battle entails…"

"Actually, Hokage-sama…"

A rather sickly agent under the Hokage appeared via use of a Shunshin. He appeared to have worn standard Konoha shinobi attire with a complementary headband tied in the back, hiding away the majority of his brunet locks.

Getting over a coughing fit, the new arrival stayed in a crouch. "From here on, as the referee, will you please allow me, Gekkou Hayate, explain? I humbly apologize on account of my tardy entrance."

The wizened Fire Shadow slightly bobbed his head. "By all means, Hayate-san."

The ill-looking Tokubetsu Jounin spoke in a rather kind matter as he stood on his feet. "Hello, everyone. My name is Hayate, and…um…there's something I'd like for you to do before we start the third part of the test…"

'_Whoa,'_ Naruto thought. _'Is that guy sick? Is he all right? Does he need throat lozenges?'_

"…Let's see…It's a preliminary for the third part. It's to decide who gets to participate in the main event…"

The seemingly unhealthy brunet went on to explain that the first two phases of the test were deemed 'too easy' and that too many people remained. The number of participants had to be reduced on account of time constraints, coupled with the fact that the fights could extend to a very long duration.

He had then asked if anyone would like to retire from the competition, since the fights would begin in earnest.

Seeing no one raise his or her hand, the glasses-wearing 'genin' raised his own. "I…am going to quit."

Ignoring the astonished genin, Hayate held up a clipboard and coughed into his hand. "You're Yakushi Kabuto-kun from Konoha, correct?" He coughed again. "You may leave now." He made some marks here and there on the pages held on the clipboard.

With a very plastic smile, Kabuto spoke softly to his teammates and departed from the group, sparing quick glances in Naruto and Sasuke's direction. There was no need to blow his cover while fighting with above-Chuunin levels. He was also aware of the fact that his master was watching…well, more so of his summons than anything. If that were the case, then his job as an informant for Orochimaru-sama was complete.

'_I'll save the fun for some other time, Sasuke-kun…and you, too, Naruto-kun…'_

Naruto kept a cautious eye on the bespectacled ninja. Something just did not sit well whenever Kabuto was around. In a way, the guy gave him the creeps.

"Is there anyone else willing to forfeit?" A small flicker of insight passed through Hayate's droopy eyes. How did he forget the most crucial part? "Oh…um…I forgot to mention to you that, from now on, it'll be individual battling. Now, you may raise your hand based on your own judgment…"

Seeing no one else quit from the group, the katana-user decided that it was time to press onward. "Now, let's begin the preliminary. These knockout rounds will consist of one on one battling. In essence, you will fight as if in a real life confrontation." He paused to cough a few more times. "Now that we have twenty entrants, we will conduct ten matches in total. The victors will advance to the third test."

To Naruto, the proctor in front of them could potentially hack up a lung with that coughing fit.

"There are basically no rules," Hayate continued. "The fight will continue unless one of three options occurs: you die; you are rendered unconscious; or you submit, admitting your defeat. Um…If you don't want to die, then I would encourage you to acknowledge your defeat at a moment's notice.

"However, when I decide that the match is over, it is over if, and only if, the winner is determined by my ruling. I'll jump in and stop things, since we don't want any unnecessary deaths. This will be the object that controls your destiny…"

That was the signal. Anko tapped a button on the side of the headset. "Open it," she said through the transmitter.

Part of the wall opened up, behind the large set of hands. Planted in the wall was a considerably large monitor.

"This electronic scoreboard will show the match-ups for each battle. Now, I know that this is sudden, but let us announce the two names of the first fight…"

The electric display board spun quickly, running through the names of the chuunin hopefuls. The iridescent characters began to slow down until they paused on a set. Glowing like fire, two names had been presented.

The ones that would be facing off first would be…

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N**: I told you all that my update speed was going to be slowed down considerably.

There were some things that were beyond my control upon my return, folks; hence the reason last chapter came out so 'late.' Plus, that chapter was a 'chore,' but I didn't want it to be like that. We are supposed to write and read for our own enjoyment, right? (That's rhetorical, so, once again, don't answer that.)

But, I digress. My thoughts seemed to have dried up when I was at the midpoint of this chapter, and, hopefully, I can rediscover my lost Muse during the winter break (and away from the hectic work schedule—grumbles—) to press on with future chapters. Consider this as compensation for not updating in over four months.

But, nevertheless, I would like to thank **pudgypudge **and **weixuan18**, among others, for helping me through the knots of this chapter.

Just like my 'newer' fic, _Limit Breaker: Fūjin no Ōdachi_, don't expect any hasty updates, even though they may be sporadic (like I said, work is a top priority). That is an experiment of mine that will be a bit different in style than this.

Anyhow, about Danzou's thoughts, 'that man' will be explained much, much later.

With regard to countries, I adopt the term 'motherland,' indicative of relating the gender of lands as 'her.'

**IMPORTANT NOTICE****: **If you by chance have the time, then I would like to invite you all to join in my discussion forum, aptly titled **Orion's Utility Belt**. This forum will be open in order to discuss about my fan fiction, among other things. I may make/move challenges or so into said forum.

Until then, I'll be seeing you, and I wish you all a safe and happy holiday.

_They say that order emerges from disorder; harmony out of chaos; stability out of pandemonium. As shinobi, they must adapt and overcome any situation put out for them. Will our Chuunin hopefuls transcend the Wheel of Fortune or succumb to its unknown machinations?_

_Jikai… (Next time…) on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Battle Ignition: Genin Knockout Rounds…_

_Sakura: I will win!_

**Romaji/Jutsu Guide**

**Soin Kanmon no Jutsu (Prolonged Silence Gateway Technique)**: unknown rank supplementary ninjutsu; created by Danzou, this is an area-affect barrier technique that enshrouds noise within a given radius, dependent on chakra output; the downside is that it sacrifices containment for absolute silence (created)

**Itai**: painful

**Katon: Kyoka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Torchlight Technique)**: Low C-rank supplementary ninjutsu; allows the user to conjure a diminutive ember of fire; this jutsu is used to light candlewicks or, if more chakra is added, illuminate darkened areas (created)

**Oyaji**: pops (slang for father or old man)

**Shugonin Juunishi**: Twelve Gentlemen Guardian Ninja

**Mori no Senju**: lit. One Thousand Arms of the Forest

**Hi no Kuni**: lit. 'Fire Country,' alternatively 'The Land of Fire' (from Viz Media translation)

**Shunshin**: Body Flicker


	16. Battle Ignition: Genin Knockout Rounds

**A/N**: Good day (or good evening), ladies and gentlemen. I don't have a lot to say this time around, other than trying to peg out another chapter in the midst of my rather hectic schedule (I'll spare you all the details—you know how real life can be). I apologize for the long wait…as well as my indefinite hiatus. To those still with me, thank you ever so much for your saintly patience. To those that have left me in the harrowing darkness, I owe you a plethora of my deepest apologies. Believe me in that I'm trying to get back into the swing of things.

Without further ado, let's get down to business…

The Preliminary Rounds…

_Saishuukai… (Last time…) on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

"_There are basically no rules," Hayate continued. "The fight will continue unless one of three options occurs: you die; you are rendered unconscious; or you submit, admitting your defeat. Um…If you don't want to die, then I would encourage you to acknowledge your defeat at a moment's notice._

"_However, when I decide that the match is over, it is over if, and only if, the winner is determined by my ruling. I'll jump in and stop things, since we don't want any unnecessary deaths. This will be the object that controls your destiny…"_

_That was the signal. Anko tapped a button on the side of the headset. "Open it," she said through the transmitter._

_Part of the wall opened up, behind the large set of hands. Planted in the wall was a considerably large monitor._

"_This electronic scoreboard will show the match-ups for each battle. Now, I know that this is sudden, but let us announce the two names of the first fight…"_

_The electric display board spun quickly, running through the names of the chuunin hopefuls. The iridescent characters began to slow down until they paused on a set. Glowing like fire, two names had been presented._

_The ones that would be facing off first would be…_

_**Chapter Sixteen:**__ Battle Ignition: Genin Knockout Rounds_

Amidst the crowd, one shinobi smirked while the other one gulped in anxiety. It was going to be a very interesting match to kick off the festivities.

"Would everyone, with the exceptions of Akimichi Chouji and Temari, please move to the upper balcony?" Hayate questioned.

The portly boy was on pins and needles. He had to face off…against a _girl_? She certainly looked very mean and a bit barbaric, from what he had seen. In a sense, she embodied the femme fatale of his entire group of peers.

A steady hand grasped his shoulder from behind.

"I know it's troublesome to say this, but there's no pressure, Chouji," Shikamaru said, bored look and all. "Just do your best. That's all you can do at times like this. And remember: don't fall for easy ploys."

The hefty lad's worry was abated, courtesy of the words of encouragement from his childhood friend. He would take this loss or win in stride, whatever would be the outcome.

"If you perform well, Chouji, then I'll treat you to some barbecue," their sensei chimed in from out of nowhere. He thought that spurring along his charge with a rewarding incentive would further pacify him. "So, how about it?"

"Sensei, you shouldn't convince him with food," Ino bluntly said, eyes narrowed.

That provided the desired results. Chouji's eyes held within them a subtle fire, ready to roar. He pounded together his fists. There was grub waiting for him at the end of the tunnel. "All right, let's do this!"

XXXXXXXXXX

With everyone up on the rafters, with the exception of the two competitors and the proctor, the first match was under way.

Temari's calculating orbs took in what she saw in her rotund opponent. In a literal sense, she sized up her competition, and it left little to be desired. The frown on her face was evident of that fact.

"Let's just get this over with…" Temari commented.

Chouji was at odds with himself for the moment. Should he dare strike first against the young woman standing several meters from his position? He had a kind heart, but he could never, _ever_ hit a lady. That was what his mother told him when he was a tyke…

"I don't have all day, fatty," the fan-wielder grumbled, slamming down her ougi for accent.

It had grown eerily quiet all throughout the tower.

The portly shinobi paused in his thought processing. Did she just say…what he thought she said?

"I'm sorry," Chouji muttered between clenched teeth. "What did you call me?" Slowly, but surely, killing intent began to leak from the corpulent brunet while his eyebrows started to violently twitch. "I didn't quite catch that…"

Shikamaru placed his face in his palms and shook his head. That female ninja was sunk. It was another case of troublesome, unless it was a part of the Sand chick's strategy…

'_Wait! That's it!'_ Shikamaru's eyes grew very large.

Ino grimaced, too, on account of the now ticking time-bomb that was their normally compassionate teammate. That Suna kunoichi royally screwed herself over on that one by striking a very sensitive nerve. She just broke one of the unspoken taboos of one Akimichi Chouji…or any of his clansmen, in general:

One: Never, under any circumstance, come between an Akimichi clan member and his or her food. One would receive a humiliating pounding from the affiliate in question.

Two: Never, _ever_, under any condition, debase their status as anything other than 'pleasantly plump' or 'big-boned.' Similar results may appear similar to the first common law sanction, if not worse.

Sure, she berated Chouji time and again regarding his weight, but it was just out of concern for his well-being, even though she was loath to admit it. She would not stoop to the level of disrespecting him. That was asking for too much trouble. She was the domineering kind of individual; not coldhearted and certainly not cruel.

Temari's visage was composed and showed no emotion. "I said, 'I don't have all day, fat-ass,' or something along those lines. What? You can't hear, either? Well, then, you must be some fat retard…" She supposed that this was part of her plan: get her adversary angry enough to cause enough blunders to cost him the match.

So far, it was working…a little too well…

"Chouji better keep his head in this match, or else he's toast," the shougi player summed up.

"How so, Shikamaru?" Ino asked with her eyes still fixed on the arena.

"If he gets careless, then his opponent will capitalize on the mistakes that he will probably make. In shorter terms, she's egging him on…on purpose…" He paused. "At least, that's what I think."

"_I'm not fat!_" the portly shinobi roared. "_I'm pleasantly plump!_"

The tubby genin flashed through a couple of hand seals to expand his body to unreal proportions, enabling his clan-specific **Baika no Jutsu**. Tucking in his head and limbs, he began to roll and pick up the pace toward his opponent. That bitch was going to get steamrolled…the hard way.

"**Nikudan Sensha**!!"

Temari hid her surprise when the human cannonball picked up velocity. She rolled out of the projected path and started to process the abilities of the ninja known as Chouji.

From what the wind mistress could tell, the evident girth on his frame was the primary source to powering his techniques. He was more than likely a specialist in close-ranged combat.

She smirked. It was going to be an interesting match. She should be at the vantage point with her special style of Fuuton ninjutsu…

That was, if she could maintain a steady distance from the obese genin. Otherwise, she would get flattened beyond recognition if she was not too careful.

XXXXXXXXXX

From the rafters, Naruto glanced at the mark on Sasuke's neck and noticed an amber ring surrounding it. It appeared as though the skin surrounding said blot was elevated, indicative of an agitated, swollen state. It looked a bit grotesque.

"Hey, Sasuke?"

"What? Can't you see I'm trying to watch the match?" he asked, eyes somewhat sagging.

"I know that, but…what happened with that mark on your neck? It's…kind of puffy." Naruto's face scrunched together as if he whiffed spoiled meat.

The raven-haired ninja thought for a moment. It was sort of obvious that the blond idiot was concerned. However, in Sasuke's mind, he was getting too close for comfort. He should have remained as distant as possible.

"I'm fine, Naruto," the Uchiha flatly stated. Kakashi, along with some help from the Hokage, partially sealed the triple-tomoe mark from spreading too far. As a secondary effect, it helped with lessening the pain a little. On the other hand, after his match was done, his cyclopean sensei would haul him away to add more onto it. "So, don't worry about me. I'll manage."

Sasuke breathed easier after sating his teammate's curiosity, for he turned away his slit orbs to the arena below. He, too, peered down and saw what was about to unfold. So far, to the raven-haired genius, it was rather uneventful, to say the least. It was mainly Chouji rolling and the blonde (Temari, he remembered) evading. But, of course, it was just the start of the round, so it stood to reason that nothing worthy of note would appear…yet.

The bewhiskered ninja clutched the railing before he eased up on his grip. His right hand was dully throbbing, but it had been nowhere near the pain that he felt twenty-four hours ago. It seemed as if his regenerative abilities kicked into overdrive after he had fallen asleep. Naruto was close to being at one hundred percent when going into his upcoming fight, whenever that may be.

"Are you okay, Naruto-kun?" a soft voice asked.

The emanating scent of peaches wafted into the blond's nostrils before he turned to the direction of the kind tone.

"Haku-chan!" he cried with wide eyes. "I didn't see you with all these people in the Tower."

She gave Naruto a soothing smile and then grabbed the village savior's hand.

"Eh? Haku-chan, what are you doing?" His frantic eyes zoomed around the building, but luckily, no one paid any mind. Sakura, who was curiously looking at the quasi-tender moment, did not count.

His reply was a hand, coated in green, which hovered around his sore hand. Naruto felt ethereal warmth envelop his limb.

Her eyes crinkled in delight as she continued her ministrations. "It's only a simple diagnostic technique that I learned some time ago."

"When did you…?"

"The time's not all that important," she answered.

"I thought there weren't any secrets between us…"

"Secrets to jutsu, yes, there can be," she remarked in a sagely manner belying her age. "Other than that…" She tapered off, letting Naruto fill in the space.

The blue-eyed kid paused with a blank look on his face. "Fair enough," he stated after a sigh.

"I noticed that you have been favoring that hand for quite some time, even when Hokage-sama was giving his speech." Concern was subtly pouring out of her voice. "I just thought that I…should check on you. That's all." She canceled the technique. "For the most part, your hand is all right, but I detected some faint traces of…burned muscles due to concentrated chakra usage. At any rate, they're close to fully healed, and the pain should subside within another hour or two."

Naruto nodded. "That sounds like good news, then." A phantom pain ran through his shoulder, causing him to wince. He rubbed the area where he was bitten by that damnable serpent. It was not as elevated as Sasuke's mark, but it was definitely a sight for sore eyes. "Mind giving this a quick once-over, too, Haku-chan?"

Regrettably, the Hyouton specialist shook her head. "That…is something that I cannot heal, given the amount of training and experience. I'm afraid that it would be beyond my expertise." She wished that she could help him, but it was out of her hands. She could not do much of anything. With a heavy heart, it was painful to see her savior…er, the village's savior suffering from a burden that she could not lighten.

"You don't need to be upset, Haku-chan," Naruto spoke, clearly reading what was on the Hyouton kunoichi's mind, much to her surprised look. The boy's perception was astounding. "Compared to the things I've gone through, this isn't anything to sweat over." He gave her a light smile. "Trust me on this one. I'll be okay."

While the two were immersed in their own world, a gust of wind was followed by a loud, rumbling sound. Naruto, Haku, and Sakura turned their attention to the showground and had seen Chouji engraved along the edge of the wall. From where his body impacted, spider web-like cracks crept up and around the partition.

Gekkou Hayate could tell that the portly boy would not be getting up after he fell from his indentation. "The winner of this match is Temari."

"Wait a minute," Naruto muttered under his breath as he took in the scene below. "What the hell just happened?"

"Should've been paying better attention, knucklehead," Sasuke retorted while the medical staff sprung into action. With little to no effort, the medical-nin moved the portly boy onto a stretcher and carried him away to be treated for any injuries.

Naruto took the opportunity to hold his tongue from unleashing a flood of expletives against his dark-haired teammate. Now was not the time to blow his top. However, he could not stop from grinding together his teeth or clenching together his fists.

'_Just calm down…'_ he chanted to himself.

He was not stupid; nor was he bright, either. He had his moments of clarity, whereas, in some cases, he would be left wandering around in the dark. This would be one of those times.

Naruto could have asked Kakashi-sensei, but their perverted instructor was too engrossed in his trashy book. He probably did not see much of anything as well. It was either that, or he just feigned not paying attention.

With an even breath, he used his enhanced vision to take in the big picture from what took place.

Taking into account from what he had seen of Chouji's abilities, that blast of wind was evidently not his own, so it was, without a doubt, part of Temari's arsenal.

'_So, she's got a concentration in Fuuton, eh?'_ he calculated while watching the older blonde walk proudly to her squad. _'That could explain that…thing that she has on her back. I didn't see if it could be opened or not.'_

He would have to keep an eye on that other blonde and see what she pulled off. Maybe he could learn something from her, just like what he saw from that Zaku guy.

Hayate's voice broke through Naruto's thoughts. "Um…I think we should go on with the next match." He coughed to clear his throat.

The symbols on the electronic board became a blur before landing on another set of competitors.

"Well, I guess I'm up," Sasuke evenly said. He turned to Naruto and displayed a rather conceited, smug look. "Watch and learn, idiot."

Naruto pretended to be disinterested when Sasuke flipped off the railing and into the arena below. "What a show-off," he muttered under his breath.

Sakura heard the subtle jab and lightly smacked Naruto in the back of his head. "Like you're one to talk," she retorted with flat eyes.

He cut his eyes to the rosette-haired kunoichi. "Hey, I'm just saying," the blond weakly spoke up in his defense.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Are the challengers ready?" Hayate asked between a fit of coughing.

Sasuke took in what he saw in his opponent; someone by the name of Tsurugi Misumi. From the looks of it, the ninja appeared to be well-built, lean and well beyond Sasuke's age—probably twice as much, if the dark-haired shinobi could guess.

The man's head was obscured from view due to a bandana on his cranium and a deep-violet cloth hanging around the lower half of his face. Like Kabuto, Misumi possessed a set of glasses as well, and his eyes did not look friendly in the least.

Narrowing his focus on the competition, Sasuke nodded his head in the affirmative. He would take this challenge head-on to test his mettle. He prepared himself by shifting into his natural fighting stance.

'_Arms out…knees slightly bent…I'm good…'_

"You should know," Misumi said with a sneer, "that I show no mercy against punks like you."

"Hn," Sasuke snorted in indifference.

The masked ninja narrowed his eyes. "I'll say this now: if I put my techniques on you, it's over. Give up immediately."

"Go ahead," Sasuke retorted with nonchalance. He slightly slid his leading foot. "Do your worst."

With an unspoken signal, the larger genin sprang into action by rushing his smaller foe with a quick right hook. Sasuke, as per instinct, nimbly dodged the oncoming blow to where his face would have been. In turn, the lone Uchiha utilized his opponent's momentum by grabbing the larger of the two and throwing him over his shoulder.

The elder shinobi deftly landed in a crouch to regain his center of gravity.

'_Hmm,' _he mused. _'This kid's not half-bad…manipulating my own weight against me with little resistance…'_

Misumi noticed that the short kid was flying through hand seals…probably gearing up for a Fire Release technique.

He was not going to let that Uchiha punk incinerate him. Once again, Misumi rushed Sasuke, breaking his concentration. The purple-clad shinobi launched a punch, but the sole Sharingan wielder used his two arms to stop the blow to his face.

Sasuke's relief did not last long, however, when the arm that he grabbed began to contort and wrap around him like a boa constrictor, completely trapping both of his arms.

"What the—?"

"I won't give you a chance to do anything!" the stretchy shinobi thundered.

'_Damn it,'_ he pondered as he struggled to break free. _'I can't use jutsu now…'_

"In order to gather information, my body has been altered to fit in any space," Misumi spoke up out of the lone Uchiha's surprise. "I can keep squeezing until I break your bones." He narrowed his eyes. "If you don't give up, then I'll keep squeezing harder."

Sure enough, Sasuke felt even more pressure constricting around his now immobile joints and muscles.

"Guu…" he wheezed. Keeping his cool, the Sharingan heir looked around for a way out. _'I can barely breathe…'_

"I don't know what you're planning," the contorted ninja cut in, as if giving his prey a warning, "but you can't do anything while like this." One could feel the sneer coming from behind his mask. "Try something funny, and I won't wait for you to give up. I'll immediately break your neck, boy." He applied more pressure. "So, go ahead, hurry up and submit."

"Heh," Sasuke managed to huff out. "Is that all you've got? Even…my teammates could do better…than what you're doing."

Misumi grunted. "You asked for it, shrimp."

'_I'm not going out like this,'_ Sasuke mused. _'I have to achieve my goal…'_

_SNAP!_

Most of the participants looked on in mute horror, while a select few looked on with unbreakable concentration. Something was not right as Sasuke's body hung limp in Misumi's serpentine grip.

XXXXXXXXXX

"No!" Naruto shouted while running his fingers through his hair. The grimace that lined his face practically pulled most of the muscles along his mandible. "No, no, no, no! This can't be it!" Doshaburi practically felt the worry that poured from his master.

'_Master Naruto…'_

Sakura, on the other hand, was tearing up. Saline drops were pricking at the corners of her vision. "Sasuke-kun…" she hoarsely whispered.

"I wouldn't count out your teammate just yet, if I were you," Kakashi noted, startling his charges a bit.

Of all things, the bewhiskered blond wondered since when did his perverted sensei stop reading his book and paid more attention to the fight.

The foxy genin and his pink-haired counterpart noticed a slight twinkle in their instructor's eye; as if he knew something that they did not. "Just watch and see for yourself, ye of little faith." Said orb crinkled in amusement, leaving Naruto and Sakura more confused than ever.

"Huh?"

"Eh?"

'_The blank looks tell it all…'_ the Copy-Ninja inwardly mused.

XXXXXXXXXX

The contorting ninja heaved a sigh. "Damn idiot…You made me kill you…"

"I made you kill who, now?"

Confused looks wandered around the entirety of the stadium, looking for what sounded like the last Uchiha's voice. Ever slowly, Sasuke emerged from the ground like a ravenous phantasm while Misumi looked as if he had seen just that…a wayward spirit desiring vengeance.

It was then that the serpentine ninja saw that ever-burning fire in the Uchiha's eyes that could never be extinguished. Within those eyes, Misumi could see that strong will to survive…the need to conquer those who stood in his path to glory and infamy in the shinobi world.

Those very eyes shook the distorted man to the core.

'_What _is_ he?'_

'_I suppose I ought to thank that Rain ninja for the inspiration…'_ Sasuke rippled out of the ground and stood up on the solid linoleum of the stadium.

"The hand seals were a ruse, Misumi," Sasuke stated in a condescending tone. "The technique I laid out was already in the false sequence. You thought that you had me, but it was I who had laid the trap, and you became the victim." With a snap of his fingers, the effigy that Misumi grasped started to ignite in a blaze of orange and red flames. With naught but a whisper, Sasuke spoke softly the name of his technique, "**Katon: Shoushin no Kouji**…"

It was then that the bespectacled ninja started to howl in pain, trying to snuff out the flames, when a swift kick was delivered to his smoldering, limp body.

However, Sasuke was not finished with his attack. It needed a dazzling follow-through; something that would even make the 'dead-last' green with envy.

The Uchiha scion began to spin on his head, with legs spread wide and angular, almost like a revolving top.

'_What the hell is that bastard trying to do?'_ Naruto mused as his lips pursed in tandem with his thinking scowl. _'I never saw anything like this coming from him before…'_

His question was answered when dazzling flames ignited from underneath Sasuke's head, propelling him skyward, to meet his soaring foe head-on.

In fact, Sasuke's foot landed in the dead center of the contorted shinobi's back after his fire-powered launch. The gurgling sound from the semi-conscious Tsurugi did not end the oncoming bombardment of kicks, sending both ninja higher into the air.

The raven-haired avenger nimbly gained a leverage hold onto Misumi's clothes, propelling himself over the fatigued body to plant another hard kick into the older ninja's ribcage.

Once again, the onyx-eyed shinobi's onslaught was nowhere near finished. Just like he had done in the Forest of Death, he saturated his extremities with chakra, but this time, scorching-hot flames danced about his arms and legs. He was going to make this really sting.

With one final bellow, the Sharingan-wielder fired away with impressive follow-throughs of hammer blows and knee strikes to his now-plummeting adversary.

The chain combo ended with sizzling, fiery heel-plants delivered to Misumi's sternum. When the contorted shinobi hit the floor with a sickening thud, fissures in the linoleum tiles could be evidently seen. Tsurugi Misumi was down, out, and not going to get back up any time soon.

After the unilateral attack, the sole Uchiha stood up, exhausted, after delivering unto his opponent the highly impromptu **Shishiku Rendan**—the Lion's Roar Combo, which essentially combined elemental chakra into the art of taijutsu, but finished out with a different style of brutality. At first, when the…_former_…idiot thought up of it, Sasuke scoffed at the idea. He thought of it as an impossible feat…

The Sharingan-wielder regretted having said that, for, during a practice (experimental) bout, he had the air knocked out of him when Naruto landed a blow to his gut, which was enhanced by wind-natured chakra. Sure, he would never admit it out loud that he was taken by surprise on that day, but that gave pause for thought on the many combinations and possibilities he could acquire through blending different disciplines to create something that maintained the best of both worlds. He shook his limbs in an attempt to stop the tingling sensation from having fire-enriched chakra percolate through his system. He would have to be cautious on how to use that later.

Upon further confirmation of the twisting ninja's status, Hayate ambled over to the downed man and checked him. Misumi was breathing, albeit barely, with some occasional wheezing. He could assume that his eyes were closed behind his shady eyewear. There was no doubt; he could declare this as a victory in the younger shinobi's favor.

The seemingly sickly proctor coughed a bit before he spoke up amidst the hanging stillness. "Tsurugi Misumi is unable to continue. The winner of this match…is Uchiha Sasuke…"

XXXXXXXXXX

Silence reigned over the entire stadium after the upset win in the Uchiha's favor. Though it may have been desolately quiet, the thoughts of many aspiring chuunin hopefuls were buzzing about like an angry hive of bees (or rather, destruction beetles in Shino's case). Even some of the higher-ranked shinobi and kunoichi were rather impressed by that rather short match.

Stroking his thinning beard, the Sandaime Hokage looked rather pleased with how well the Uchiha heir turned out. It seemed as if his opinion on the matter of team placements had turned out for the better. He was especially impressed with how Sasuke managed to integrate ninjutsu into taijutsu, despite how foolhardy and dangerous that had been. That, in and of itself, took considerable skill beyond reproach and without peer. How he managed to not burn himself to a crisp was beyond him. Hiruzen decided to stash away that idea to toggle around at a later time.

Who said that old dogs could _not_ learn new tricks?

XXXXXXXXXX

Once Sasuke was whisked away by their jounin instructor for reasons unknown, Naruto stood on the sidelines, watching the next few matches with partially detached interest.

The next matchup was more of a battle to witness who would make the first move. His former silent classmate, Aburame Shino, was pitted against a chakra-draining ninja like himself, one Akadou Yoroi.

It would be sufficient to say that it had gone on for roughly three minutes before any progress was seen, and that was when the older shinobi began screaming as if he had been tossed into a colony of fire ants. As composed as the next shinobi exemplar, the bug-host managed to discreetly encompass the room with his insects, circling around the elder of the two, without any hint of giving away his true intentions. He simply uttered that Yoroi should give up while he still had the opportunity. Not one for throwing in the towel, the other bespectacled ninja engaged Shino for a brief amount of time.

Little did Akadou Yoroi know that landing a punch on the living host of a Destruction Beetle colony would be his undoing, for it was, once again, another ruse (in the form of a bug _clone_) before the match came to its rather anticlimactic close, with hardly any verbal speech, whatsoever.

After Shino's battle, Shikamaru made his next match a bit more entertaining, despite his griping mumbles about not wanting to be here. Regardless of the sullen boy's protests, he managed to think circles around the bandaged mummy (Dosu, he vaguely recalled). Taking into account on what the Oto-nin had on his arm, the lazy genin took the necessary steps to stay away from being hit by that…much less, being around the unsettling proximity of that metal contraption.

Once Kinuta Dosu was where Shikamaru wanted, he attacked with his clan's vaunted technique, the **Kage Mane no Jutsu**, through the cracks in the tiles, essentially freezing the elder shinobi in his place and was forced to mimic his captor's movements. Not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth, the pineapple-haired genin took out a few shuriken from his pouch, with Dosu imitating what he had done, and immediately let loose those pointed stars. It was the Oto-nin's misfortune that he was so close to the wall that he collided with it when trying to dodge the barrage, promptly knocking himself out.

His former part-time tutor, Rock Lee, probably held the fastest match conclusion to date when he fought against the Sound kunoichi, Tsuchi Kin…a whopping forty-five seconds!

At first, Lee was reluctant to face off and fight against a girl. He, like Chouji, was even more hesitant to mar her youthful image, but the spandex-clad splendid ninja was more outspoken on his stance.

That changed, however, when Kin started to ridicule his style of dress…as well as slandering his sensei…

Those who knew the splendid ninja slightly winced when she directly prodded into a taboo subject.

_Never, under any condition, insult Rock Lee's mentor._

Naruto ruefully shook his head when he recalled those pointed remarks from the Oto-nin. _'The poor girl had it coming…with that mouth of hers becoming her undoing…'_

It was on account of those not-so-subtle jabs that allowed the bushy-browed ninja to hold no reservation on his part when he soundly pummeled the smaller girl into the wall, leaving an almost identical indentation alongside Chouji's when he was blasted back in his fight with Temari. Some ninja on top had to look away from the utter humiliation.

Once Lee had calmed down after the match, he gave his deepest apologies to his then-unconscious opponent before meeting back up with his teammates.

His tempered spirits were dampened a bit after he had seen the questioning looks from both Neji and Tenten, and an emotionless look from his idol and guru.

"Lee," Gai said quietly, "you have done well; however, one must never give into blind fury, for that will lead to petty vengeance. Hatred begets a vicious cycle, and the chain of events will not stop." His speech was not only directed at his youthful student, but it was implied to the less-than-youthful Neji, too. "Do you understand, Lee?"

"Yes," Lee replied, completely humbled, if his bow with his head to the ground was any indication. "My deepest apologies, Gai-sensei."

A small smile let through on Gai's visage as he knelt down and placed a shoulder on the bowing genin. "At least you know that, either in victory or defeat, you can learn valuable lessons." He looked up at his other two vernal pupils. "That goes for everyone."

Neji scowled a bit. "Right," he tightly responded.

"Yes, Gai-sensei," Tenten quietly added after her white-eyed teammate.

Even with his eccentricities, Maito Gai shared nuggets of wisdom to anyone willing to hear him out…that was, whenever he was not in the mood to go on tirades stressing 'youth.'

XXXXXXXXXX

Naruto and Sakura suddenly felt a presence appear from out of nowhere, directly behind them. Both of them had tightened up and reached for their braces of kunai, but they had relaxed when the ninja in question was none other than Kakashi-sensei.

"Yo," he uttered with a wave of his hand. If he was winded, then he did a good job with hiding it.

"Hey, Sensei," the blond genin began to ask, "could you try to be a little bit _less_ scary when you do that?"

"Well," the Copy Ninja casually responded, "you should always check your blind sides. It'll prevent things like this from happening."

Naruto frowned when he saw his sensei's lone, upturned eye. "Are you making fun of me?"

"What makes you think that, Naruto?" The question was laced with mirth.

"Um," Sakura piped up, "Kakashi-sensei, where's Sasuke-kun? Is he okay?"

If Kakashi had winced, then it went by unnoticed. "He's fine…He's in the hospital ward, resting for now…"

'…_with ANBU protection surrounding his room, though…'_ That much had been left unsaid.

It was rather disheartening for Orochimaru to come into Konoha, uncontested and running amok. Even though Kakashi was told by the Great Snake that he had been maimed by his students, the man was still a grave threat, if that overbearing thirst for blood was any indication. He was a fool for thinking that he could compete with someone with a little over twenty years more experience than him.

But still, the Copy-Ninja hid his shock and pride with relative ease when he gleaned that bit of data from Orochimaru. His team crippled the crafty Orochimaru, which was definitely something far beyond words. Granted, it was probably due to the element of surprise that his charges managed to disable that traitor. On that, Hatake Kakashi was fairly certain. He would now have to keep a close—actually, scratch that—closer eye on each of them, just in case any outside party wanted to spirit away one, two, or all three of his pupils. Since the defected shinobi knew now of his charges' capabilities, he doubted that the same result would come about again.

His thoughts were interrupted when the proctor called out that the sixth match was about to start.

"Man," Naruto sniffed, "there sure are a lot of interesting people here…weird ones, too…"

The blond ninja heard his sensei snicker a bit. "Heh…Like you're one to talk, Naruto."

Sakura, on the other hand, guffawed. "Hah! Good one, Sensei…"

Apparently, the humor ran both ways from Kakashi. "I wouldn't be laughing now, if I were you, Sakura. Just look." He pointed to the digital projector.

"Huh?" Sure enough, her name was on the board, but was rather stunned by the name of her opponent.

Cyan orbs looked at the projector, too. "Oh!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Emerald eyes met foam-green as one set eyed the other cautiously, and vice versa.

"I never thought that it'd come to this, Sakura," Ino mentioned, eyes still locked onto the rosette.

"…Likewise, Ino," Sakura muttered. She owed a lot to her former friend; Ino acknowledged her true potential and self-worth despite being belittled for her insecurities when they were in Suzume-sensei's flower-arranging class. It was Ino that stood up to Sakura's aggressors, and from the bottom of her heart, she would truly be in the blonde girl's debt for giving her the encouragement to blossom into something far more beautiful than the cosmos flower.

With an even breath, the pink-haired kunoichi removed her hitai-ate and retied it so the Hidden Leaf insignia was visible on her forehead.

'_Ino…I have always believed those words that you told me. I always hoped they were true. You were my goal; I wanted to be like you, and now, here I am…'_

"Ino," Sakura started, "right now, I have no intention of fighting over Sasuke-kun with you…"

The blonde's forehead developed a twitch mark. "What was that!?" she bellowed.

"In fact…I'm not worrying over him for the moment, either," Sakura softly uttered, which made Ino pause unexpectedly in her tirade. Her bright, green orbs were no longer in view when Sakura bowed her head and closed her eyes. "I will no longer be the damsel in distress and fight on my own accord. I hope that, through this match with you, I can find my own courage." When her head rose up a few seconds later, resolution permeated her porcelain visage.

"Sakura…" Ino was beyond words, but then realized what her former friend was conveying. _'I get it…'_

Like Sakura, she, too, straightened up her forehead protector to fit appropriately, to match the same position. Then, she smirked. "You better bring your A-game, because I'm not going to go easy on you!" Deep down, she felt wary of this developing cherry blossom before her, but on the whole, she was very excited to pit herself against her proclaimed competitor.

"Heh," the green-eyed bookworm snickered as she readied her taijutsu stance. The look of concentration on Sakura's face was unwavering. "Just you wait, Ino. You haven't seen anything yet."

Racing toward one another, the match between the Mind Mistress and the Shadow Blossom was under way…

XXXXXXXXXX

Flipping through a few hand seals, one Sakura split into three as the distance was being closed.

"What?" Ino was astonished…as well as a bit insulted. "You're coming at me with that textbook technique?"

The blonde hurriedly tried to seek out the real one out of the three copies, but she was immediately cut off when the real Sakura dashed at her with blinding speed and socked her in the jaw. The blow sent the Yamanaka girl a few yards back, all the while shouting in pain.

"If you think I'm the Sakura that cries a lot, then you'll be hurting badly! Get back on your feet, Ino!"

'_I'm definitely not thinking that…You have changed, Sakura…'_ Ino wiped where she was struck and grinned. She would not admit that, even if her personal pride was at stake. "As you wish, here I come…" Staggering back on her feet, Ino rushed through the Inu and Hitsuji hand seals and focused her mental concentration on the area in front of Sakura. The rosette felt a sharp thrust into her abdomen, grunted, and was promptly propelled her back a few feet.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Whoa…" Shikamaru said, rather astonished. "Since when could Ino do _that_?" He could have sworn that the Yamanaka did not have any offensive ninja arts in their archives. He was sure of it…unless, as per usual, the clan held out on what each member truly knows and what kinds of jutsu are catalogued. He grumbled, "Troublesome," and just left it at that.

XXXXXXXXXX

"What do you think of my **Ninpou: Kiryoku Bakufuu**, Sakura? It gives you a shock to your system, doesn't it?" The grin that radiated on Ino's face practically oozed smug superiority.

Sakura started to chuckle. "Interesting…" She would admit that she was caught unaware of that cheap parlor trick. It was just a minor concussion blast of the user's will that was projected outward to knock back any oncoming adversary. Finally getting back her breath, she continued. "We could turn this into a jutsu battle, if you wish…"

That smirk never left the mind-walker's face. "Go for it…"

"My pleasure…"

The lone Haruno-turned-shinobi flew through a varied and (dare Ino say it) complex string of hand seals, finally landing on some awkward looking seal. Her left hand was practically balled into a fist, whereas her right hand was made into a half-Tora seal.

Sakura brought up her right limb close to her cranium while she extended the left one at a forty-five-degree angle away from her…

XXXXXXXXXX

"Oh, no…" Lee was gripping the guard rails as hard as Naruto had been doing. He had seen it as an eyewitness, and he never liked it when it came out to play. He started shaking a bit.

"What's wrong, Lee?" Tenten asked with a worried look adorning her face. "It's not like you to worry about something."

"She is about to unleash a not-so-very-youthful entity that resides within her…"

"Huh?" The weapons mistress was befuddled. "What on earth does that mean?"

However, the splendid ninja pressed on as if he had not heard his teammate. "…Something the likes of which you will never want to see or witness in your lifetime…"

"What are you doing, speaking in code?" Neji scoffed.

Lee could not say anything more. He wanted to crawl into a fetal position and grovel for immunity at Gai-sensei's feet. The splendid ninja felt woe in that he would lose his delicate flower to some hidden beast.

XXXXXXXXXX

Elsewhere in the stadium, the sand in the bloody-haired Sand shinobi's gourd started to grind against itself and whirl about frantically. Whatever it was, Mother was overjoyed.

"Should I feed you her blood, Mother?" Gaara quietly asked in his usual monotone, which immediately brought his siblings to be on edge for what may happen…as well as taking a step back from the deranged jinchuuriki.

Whatever excited the demon poorly sealed inside Gaara was not a good thing…

XXXXXXXXXX

"Release!"

Ino got concerned when she felt that chakra spike coming from her former companion, but then grew pensive when some black, gaseous effigy flew from Sakura's mouth and eyes and landed beside her.

The now-crouching figure stood up to match the same height as the pink-haired kunoichi adjacent to her. She looked like Sakura, but she had hair as dark as the midnight hour, and her cheongsam and tight-fitted shorts resembled a photo negative of Sakura's attire—a black dress with red trousers.

While the authentic Haruno coughed a bit due to the strain on her body, the Sakura-double began to cackle wildly. "Hey, Ino-_chan_," she commented playfully, "remember me?"

It was then that Ino's blood chilled for a brief second. _That_ was the thing that kicked her out of Sakura's mind when she tried to pry into what the bookworm knew in regard to the questions on the first phase of the Chuunin selection examinations. Though, she could have sworn that she was just a chalky outline of her outer image, but with a very vicious streak…and quite a foul temper, too.

The mind-walking kunoichi tried her best to hide her grimace from view. _'So, that's your power, Sakura…'_

"Why wouldn't I?" Ino carefully retorted while glancing between the two, seeing if either one would make a move. Odds were definitely not in her favor at this point in time. A two-on-one assault was unfair, but so was the world of ninja—one would play to win, by hook or by crook, whether one would like it or not. She overheard her father mentioning to his fellow drinking buddies about damning the rules of impartiality.

Now that her pattern of breathing was stabilized, Sakura got back on her feet. "**Youjutsu Kuchiyose: Kage Ningyou Bushi**…Let's say that you can equate this to a semi-solid clone of mine that won't go away any time soon." It took half of her available reserves, as well as tapping into the first two Inner Gates for the boost—**Kaimon**, the First Initial Chakra Gate, and **Kyuumon**, the second chakra Gate of Rest—so, of course it would be sticking around for quite a while! The chakra needed was not only to bring out her Inner Will by forcing open her mental pathways, but it was also used to form a solid body for her cerebral construct. If she had not been prepared, then it would have left even more considerable strain on her body.

"Well, then," Inner Sakura chirped, "let's start this dance! Shannaro!"

The duet sprang into action with matching sprints, side by side.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Well, it was about damn time that I updated again, right?

(That's a rhetorical question; please, don't answer.)

To appease you all, this fic is _**not**_ dead in the water, even though I haven't updated in almost over eleven months or so. I've been nursing this chapter ever since the start of the New Year, and I'm still not really all that content with it. I suppose that would be my inner perfectionist trying to rear its ugly head.

At any rate, I would like to, once again, give you my deepest apologies for leaving my most faithful readers in the dark after all this time. Let's say that it's been rather busy on my part, seeing that my senior year of college is catching up to me rather quickly (assignments, the creeping deadlines and what have you). I'm sure that a handful of you can relate to what I'm going through. Well, that and I have been compiling a lot of forethought for both of my current fics. Along those lines, not a lot of fan fiction authors are updating as of late, too. I think we've hit a dry spell…or a lot of people are a bit more interested on how well the manga is staying afloat or flopping.

Nevertheless, I hope that the fights (for the moment) were enjoyable, at the very least. I had a huge block regarding that, unfortunately, since I decided (more or less, was persuaded by **pudgypudge**) to change the Chuunin preliminary match-ups a bit to break up from the standard, monotonous results from the manga. Some had to remain canon, however, for a greater purpose. Be on the lookout for the rest of the fights in the next installment. I know that this is short in comparison the more 'recent' chapters, but I've been putting this off longer than I thought.

As per the norm, I must give credit where credit is due. I would like to thank **pudgypudge** and **weixuan18** for their input, and **Paladeus** for giving this chapter several glances.

Anyhow, now that I've spoken my peace, let me know what you think (meaningful reviews, now, and try not to snipe me for not updating), and enjoy the rest of your day (or evening, depending on your time zone), ladies and gentlemen.

_**Oh, and be sure to visit my forum to keep abreast with my update progress…among other things.**_

_The preliminary exams are coming to a close. Several of our chuunin hopefuls have endured against the opposition. What will the winners do during their short reprieve? Time is ticking, and they are not getting any younger…_

_Jikai (Next time)…on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Training Daze (Part I)_

**Romaji/Jutsu Guide**

**Baika no Jutsu (Multi-Size Technique)**: unranked, supplementary secret ninja art technique for the Akimichi clan; this jutsu increases the user's body size by using up the user's food energy, converting calories into chakra (Narutopedia)

**Nikudan Sensha (Human Bullet Tank)**: C-rank offensive short- to mid-range body technique; practitioners of this secret art use the **Multi-Size Technique** to make themselves into a human-sized ball, while tucking their limbs inside their clothes and use chakra to propel themselves into a powerful, but slow, roll; it is difficult for the user to turn in this form (Narutopedia)

**Katon: Shoushin no Kouji (Fire Release: Lure of Self-Immolation)**: C-rank supplementary ninjutsu; the user leaves a volatile clone of him or herself that incinerates upon the slightest of sound effects from him or her, such as fingers snapping (created)

**Shishiku Rendan (Lion's Roar Combo)**: C-rank offensive taijutsu maneuver; variant of the original **Lion Combo**, but finishes off the opponent with a dual heel-plant into the abdominal region; this technique increases in grade level if the user adds elemental chakra into it (created)

**Kage Mane no Jutsu (Shadow Imitation Technique)**: supplementary secret ninja art to members of the Nara clan; this technique allows the user to extend his shadow for as far as it has sufficient area; once it comes into contact with a target's shadow, the two merge and the target is forced to imitate the user's movements (Narutopedia)

**Ninpou: Kiryoku Bakufuu (Ninja Art: Willpower Blast)**: D-rank offensive all-range hijutsu; user creates a weak concussion wave to knock back foes (created; based off Diablo II: Lord of Destruction Assassin's **Mind Blast Shadow Discipline**)

**Youjutsu Kuchiyose: Kage Ningyou Bushi (Dark Art Summoning: Shadow Puppet Warrior)**: C-rank offensive/defensive Haruno-clan kekkei genkai youjutsu; user draws out Inner Will as it manifests itself into a human being and as an effective battle partner (created; based off Diablo II: Lord of Destruction Assassin's **Shadow Warrior Shadow Discipline**)


	17. Training Daze: Part I

**A/N**: Good day to you all, ladies and gentlemen. Once again, I don't have much to say, so I'll spare you the details for not updating this in so long. Like I mentioned, I wasn't too particularly happy with the last chapter, but it is a start after a long period of inactivity.

Anyhow, I'll be easy on your eyes and let you read onward, since you have all been waiting in anticipation…

**Recap**** (For those too lazy or find it too bothersome to go back and reread everything, this is for you. If not, or if you have a pretty spot-on memory, then continue reading onward): **

_Ever since the incident on the then-unnamed bridge in the Wave Country, Team Seven's lives were never the same. _

_Uzumaki Naruto, the social untouchable of Konohagakure no Sato, after knocking out Haku (who is female in this continuum), struck a deal with the powerful entity locked away in his stomach—the Kyuubi no Youko (the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox), thus gaining special features such as slit pupils, pointed ears, shaggier hair, and some centimeters taller, in addition to the manifestation of a spectral fire known as the Youkai no Enkou (Phantom Flame). However, the Kyuubi's gifts unlocked more than just establishing a mental link. Upon pillaging Gatou's impounded barge with his jounin mentor, Hatake Kakashi, Naruto stumbled upon a worn-out genealogy scroll that may possibly lead to clues surrounding his heritage, in addition to some elemental techniques and an ocher fox kit who he named Doshaburi. _

_Upon his return to Konoha, with Haku in tow (seeing that she had nowhere to go since her master was killed), Naruto continued to meditate to manifest the powers of the Phantom Flame, but suddenly, the entire landscape under him greatly altered—he rose up on a plateau over an iced-over moat with the wind sweeping over his crafted trees. Stunned and excited at the same time, he dashed to the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, who told him about his parents—one dead (Namikaze Minato, the late Yondaime Hokage), and the other missing in action (Uzumaki Kushina, the Red Eddy of the Hidden Tide—title applicable for up to this point, until canon gets factored in later on). Realizing his position in the state of things, Naruto vowed to get stronger, in order to face the challenges that have been set for him. True to his character, he helped inspire a few individuals to get better and improve in the areas of their talents._

_As the hidden noble grows in strength, outside forces want his power for their own agendas, whether it is for good or ill will. Shimura Danzou, the enigmatic leader of the Root Division of ANBU, has made one power play in broad daylight to make a grab for Naruto, which had been compromised by the target. Orochimaru, the Snake Wizard and defected Konoha ninja, has taken a keen interest in the boy after assaulting the team in the Forest of Death, even though he had other goals in mind…_

_Uchiha Sasuke, the talented heir of the near-extinct Uchiha clan, has had a chip on his shoulder; he has sworn vengeance for the honor of his family by exterminating his elder brother, Itachi, who wiped out the clan for reasons beyond his understanding. However, as the series progressed, the lone wolf of Team Seven has started to warm up to his comrades, and has since been struggling to find his path—the way of loneliness as an avenger, or someone who would grow strong through adversity and the dependence on the strength of others. After getting marked by Orochimaru in the Forest of Death, he has had an endless battle to keep the bloodlust and the suggestions boxed away, making sure that he used the power he was granted for better use. Meanwhile, he and his teammate have tried to decipher the mystery that was their blond-haired teammate—the one who supposedly had a bloodline prior to revealing to them that he also has access to Hyouton and Mokuton. Inwardly, though, Sasuke's growing jealousy may drive him away from Konoha faster than the dobe's attempt to push him further in their grudging respect for one another._

_Haruno Sakura, the only normal element of the team, found out, through Naruto and Kakashi's raid on the impounded barge, that a side of her clan hails from shinobi lineages—one based in Kusa; the other stationed in Kirigakure. She also had the capability of channeling into a kekkei genkai known as the Uchi naru Ishi (Inner Will). The Haruno of Kusagakure delved into a branch of genjutsu that makes illusions lifelike to the point that they distort reality, known as youjutsu (dark arts or black magic) and utilizes special weapons such as four-sided sporting boomerangs and flower-petal shuriken, while the Kirigakure scrolls revealed the use of a split personality that comes about from bottling up uninhibited thoughts or actions, alongside a manifested weapon through mental duress (in Sakura's case, she has managed to gain the ability to summon and use chakrams at her disposal). The rosette-haired kunoichi-in-training has started to take her job as a ninja much more seriously, with the encouragement of her alter ego and not wanting to fall too far behind the two boys in her squad._

_This is their coming-of-age adventure story…as a cohesive unit that will grow stronger under the laissez-faire tutelage of Hatake Kakashi…_

_**Chapter Seventeen:**__ Training Daze_

_(Part I)_

"Kakashi," Asuma started to say as he watched his charge put up a rather shaky defense, "just what on earth is that?"

"Hm?" The Copy Ninja carefully glanced down at the arena below. The two-on-one assault just opened up with a feint leading into an ankle sweep by his rosette-haired student. "Oh, that. Well, I can't say for sure as to how it originated, but I believe it was a clan technique from a set of purloined scrolls."

"Clan techniques? Are you sure about that?" As far as the chain-smoking jounin was concerned, Haruno Sakura hailed from the civilian district of Konoha.

"Somewhat positive," Kakashi replied in earnest. "From the looks of things, she created a false body of pure chakra, similar to that of a Kage Bunshin. The upside to that form is that it may be far more advanced than your run-of-the-mill, Academy-ranked clone variant. I think it takes more hits and dishes out the beatings without immediate dispersal. However," the Copy Ninja rubbed under his chin, "something troubles me about that influx of chakra." He racked his brain while thinking aloud. "Normally, _that_ Sakura takes over the main Sakura through a personality shift within herself, and yet, now, she forced her out in that false body…"

And then, it clicked into place when his visible eye widened from his epiphany. _'He couldn't have…'_

Kakashi of the Sharingan cut over to his self-proclaimed rival with a cautious gaze. "Gai…"

The Prideful Green Beast of Konoha found himself surprised to be called upon by his youthful rival. "You called, Kakashi?"

The ashen-haired jounin's voice chilled all who were present. "I'd like to have…some words with you, after these preliminary rounds have finished. It pertains to your recklessness with divulging secrets of a certain kinjutsu to one of my pupils." For some reason, it caused the jumpsuit-wearing Gai to gulp in worry.

"If you are referring to _that_," the green-clad male outwardly countered in defense, "then I have specifically kept her knowledge on it to the barest minimum."

"You are aware of the fact that releasing the limiters on the human body—by force—is catastrophic and detrimental, in the long run," Kakashi quipped in a clipped fashion. "Without any assistance, she could have popped like a water balloon if she never received the proper guidance."

"Are you accusing me of negligence, Kakashi?" Gai seriously inquired, goofiness far foregone. "Because, from the way I see it, you are not in the 'high and mighty' category, when comparing my track record with yours."

"What's with all the cryptic talk," Kurenai chimed in with a furrowed brow, "and why are you two speaking so low?"

"Yeah," the blond genin added as he twirled around to face the whispering instructors. "What gives? What's with the tense atmosphere?"

"Apparently, _someone_," Kakashi began as he swept his suspicious look across the similar green jumpsuits toward Maito Gai, who returned it with a defiant facial expression, "taught Sakura how to tinker and manipulate the Hachimon."

The bewhiskered genin appeared puzzled. "The what?"

"…" The silence that cut through Naruto's question made tense the two who knew the nuances of the forbidden technique of debate. One scratched the side of his mask while the other started to sweat in vacillation.

"This could take longer than necessary to explain, so I'm only going over it once," the Copy Ninja lowly remarked after regaining his composure. "The Eight Celestial Chakra Gates are specific points on a person's chakra circulatory system that limit the overall flow of chakra within a person's body. The basis for the idea of the chakra gates comes from the body's limits on the functions within it. This makes the body much weaker, but it keeps the body from expiring too soon. By opening these gates, the user can surpass his own physical limits at the cost of extreme damage to the body.

"The first Gate begins in the brain," the ashen-haired assassin used his forefinger and middle finger to point to the area of focus, "known as Kaimon—the Initial Gate. It unlocks the brain's limit on physical endurance and total strain on the muscles, thus providing the person with a boost of strength five times his or her capacity. It is also here that the second Gate—Kyuumon, or the Rest Gate—gets activated. This works similar to a soldier pill in that it releases the brain's limit on the body's stamina, making a battle-worn person become miraculously ready to fight as if the fight had just started.

"Gai, I need for you to turn around."

"Huh?" That caught the unitard-wearing jounin off-guard. "Why's that, my youthful rival?"

"This is a demonstration. Besides," his visible eye crinkled in amusement, "I can't reach around to touch my own back."

Kurenai rubbed her forehead, sighing within a groan.

"Does that mean you want to volunteer, Kurenai?" Kakashi asked, mirth leaking into his voice.

'_I'd rather munch on makibishi,'_ she dourly reflected. "Oh, no, go on. I won't stop you. Go ahead and lay out their entire trump card, why don't you?"

Kakashi dutifully ignored the light sarcasm. "Moving on, along the spinal cord, we have the third—Seimon, or the Heal Gate. This releases the limit on the nervous system, which makes information travel at a faster rate and creates even more stamina; however, as a side effect, the person's skin turns red, indicating an increased blood-oxygen level."

"Sounds pretty painful," the bewhiskered blond murmured as he heard grunts from below. He took a brief glance and caught sight of the slight bout of hair-pulling before looking back.

"…It's a double-edged sword for a reason, Naruto," his mentor clarified. He then pointed to his chest. "Anyway, the next gate that can be opened is the fourth—Shoumon, the Harm Gate, which releases the limit on oxygen intake in the lungs, creating much more oxygen for the body to use. Then, the fifth, Tomon—the Limit Gate, located roughly around the same area, which releases the limit on the amount of chakra released at one time.

"Now, here's where it gets to be damaging to the body, if you're not used to zooming around the field like a bolt of lightning," the seasoned veteran commented, taking a playful jab at Gai's prowess. "The sixth—Keimon, the View Gate, removes the limit on how much fat and proteins the intestines can digest, and releases otherwise useless energy resources, giving the user even more power and stamina. Think of the body now as an inexhaustible battery that fuels a radio headset." Seeing a light bulb go off in the blond's head, he pressed on. "Around the same area, but closing in on the heart region, is the Kyoumon, or the Wonder Gate, and that removes the limit on how fast the body can move, removes wastes from dead skin cells to feces, and gives the body a much cleaner system to work with, producing even more power and stamina. This is kind of like a supernatural oil coating of chakra that enshrouds you, allowing you to move in a friction-less environment, per se.

"Last, and definitely least, is the Shimon, or the Death Gate, located right on the heart. This Gate uses up all of the body's remaining energy when opened. It makes the heart pump at maximum power and exceeds the power of every other gate, and all the power in every individual cell is used up, giving the user power well above that of any Kage. The effect only lasts temporarily, but the costs are extreme…"

"So, for a small amount of time, you get an insane amount of power, but you basically tear your body to shreds like paper, right?" Naruto asked, trying to wrap his head around the concept.

"To put it bluntly, yes, Naruto, that hits the nail on the head," Kakashi noted, hands now in his pockets and looking back down at the arena below to see how things fared for Sakura. "It's a good thing that Sakura can't open up more than two. The access to that kind of chakra helps augment that summon of hers, and nothing more."

"Easy for you to say," Naruto grumbled, ears drooping a bit. "You don't get to see her when she gets all crazy during times of the month." He shivered, fluttering his black and orange-striped jacket this way and that.

Kakashi let loose a light snicker before clarifying for his fellow ninja. "She knows what the real Sakura knows, but doesn't have the blinders on and sees things more as they are and is like her truest self. No inhibitions and no lies and a bit more sadistic. But, look on the bright side," he intoned, a twinge of laughter in his voice, but it felt like he was on the verge of eating his own words. "At least she doesn't sparkle…"

Kurenai looked mortified. "You didn't…just reference _that_ literature…"

Now, the veteran shinobi tried his best to not cringe. It was naught but a slip of the tongue. "I did, didn't I?"

Asuma took his time to look between his colleagues. "Just what the hell are you two on about?"

XXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, in the arena below, Ino skidded to a grinding halt after getting pelted by a tag-team of kicks. She carefully examined both counterparts across the linoleum tiles, rubbing her scalp from the abuse from a few seconds ago.

For the most part, both Sakura and her inner persona kept relatively close in proximity and never ventured beyond a set distance apart from one another. Delving into her math skills, she easily calculated that both of her opponents never ventured beyond nine meters.

'_Hm…Maybe I could play that to my advantage,'_ the mind-walking kunoichi reasoned as she licked her chapping lips. _'I need to draw in one of them, pin the other and force that space between the two, causing that…thing of hers to dispel.'_ It was a risk that she dared to take and hoped to work to her benefit.

Backed into a corner, she tested the bait.

"So," Ino spoke up after the elongated silence, "you can't beat me alone, so you have your little stunt double helping you out. Talk about unfair, Forehead…"

The cerise-haired girl merely glared in her direction, rooted to where she stood. _'She's taunting me to attack!'_

"Hold back, now…" Sakura looked to see her other half recklessly charge forward, silently accepting the challenge. "Hey, wait!" She began to sprint in order to catch up to her. "This isn't part of the plan!"

The mind-walking kunoichi flew through a few hand seals to produce a couple of clones to throw the assailants off her trail while she began to drum up a plan.

In her tunnel vision, Sakura's Inner Will passed through one of the blurry afterimages and stopped her momentum by pushing against the wall.

Just as the genuine rosette dashed around the clones, guard now dropped and totally forgetting her situational awareness, she felt a pair of strong arms loop around her waist, only to shift strength into a full nelson headlock.

Jade eyes frantically darted around as she grunted and tried to pry herself loose, only to no avail.

The Yamanaka scion dragged away the original as she dispelled her own illusory bunshin. She critically gazed at Sakura's Shadow Puppet Warrior and noticed that it started to teeter and distort a bit in its matrices, but, for the most part, it remained intact.

'_Wait!'_ Ino wondered as she began to second-guess herself. Did she drag Sakura to a long-enough distance? _'Why didn't it dispel?'_ A growing panic started to rise from within.

"I bet you're stumped now, huh, Ino-pig?" the budding kunoichi rhetorically asked while still in her rival's clutches. "Just because we have a critical distance between my other half and me, it doesn't mean the link is broken." She closed her mouth to keep her secrets to herself. She did not want to elaborate any more than necessary. "You're not getting anything else out of me."

As of this very moment, Yamanaka Ino realized, with widening eyes, that this Sakura before her began to create herself from the ground up and forged her own path. She was no longer that 'cry-baby' that she once knew.

"Oh, and Ino," her captive friend helpfully supplied, "you won't like _that_ side of me when she gets angry…" In her captor's confusion, Sakura planted her ridged heel on Ino's toes, which caused her to yelp in pain and forced her to release her headlock.

This caused the hobbling Ino to take a glance at the brunette Sakura look-alike, who had her hands in a wacky symbol that was not familiar to her.

"Hope you like what I got cooking up for you, _Ino-chan_," the inner ego cooed as visible creeper vines erupted from her spot on the floor, making a beeline for the stunned kunoichi in the purple garb. _'Youjutsu Magen: Tsuta Wana no Jutsu…success…'_

The sudden appearance of the Dark Art Demonic Illusion: Ivy Snare Technique baffled, confused, or shocked the surrounding audience. Some speculated that she might have been a hidden Senju in plain sight due to that display of power. The genjutsu felt way too real for it to be artificial. Others, on the other hand, stood nonplussed, thinking that Konoha boldly showed off a Mokuton kunoichi just to rub it in the faces of their current allies.

'_How can everyone see this illusory technique even if it wasn't cast on all of us?'_ Kurenai errantly thought as she tried to dissect the mechanics of such an intricate jutsu. She tapped her hands into a clapping gesture before holding them together under her nose. _'That is such a unique and impressive genjutsu for one so young. Plus, she also makes it seem lifelike…almost like another Yakumo…'_ Intrigued, and trying her best to refrain from reminiscing on a former protégé, she glanced at her fellow jounin, who now held a critical eye on the watershed of the fight. _'Kakashi, just _what _did you teach those kids of yours?'_

XXXXXXXXXX

The purple-clad kunoichi struggled against these tenacious vines that were only figments of her imagination, but the reality-warping surrounding this strange technique kept her locked in place while her arms were forced apart and held to her sides.

The real Sakura, now alone and replenished of some of her lost energy from the integration of her two personas, sauntered up to her friend and rival and whipped out a kunai from her holster, resting the trowel-like knife against her exposed throat for one clean cut. Her hands did not falter in the slightest. No needs were necessary.

Yamanaka Ino conceded victory to Haruno Sakura with a subtle, "I forfeit."

XXXXXXXXXX

"I really don't believe what I'm seeing!" Asuma bellowed, wishing he had a cigarette, but someone had forced him—rather harshly—to not carry them. Either way, how the hell did Gai manage to keep things on his person with this skin-tight outfit, flak jacket notwithstanding?

The red-eyed genjutsu expert of Konoha simply shook her head in amazement and wonder. "Uncanny," she voiced out loud, still feeling a bit uncomfortable with Gai's spare jumpsuit contouring to her curves. "Kakashi, what's your secret?"

Said elite jounin looked to his compatriots with a feigned interest. On the inside, however, he beamed with pride for two of his genin to go to the final rounds. "Hm?"

"Your secret method to training your kids…" Asuma briefly cut in, trying to weasel answers out of the normally unflappable Copy Ninja. "We thought that you had a run-in with bad luck to get the most dysfunctional squad in quite a while. Now, you got them kicking ass and taking names while hardly breaking a sweat."

Kakashi just gave them a lazy shrug in response. "I just…let them loose. That's all. There's nothing profound about it." He got comfortable by leaning against the peridot-toned walls. "I just let them grow on their own, but if they want advice, then I'll always be on hand to give them a word or two."

'_That is, if I feel like it,'_ Kakashi reflected, though he dared not to voice that opinion. He got slightly distracted when the two kunoichi walked up the stairs in mixed spirits—one of joy, and the other, of disappointment. "Speak of the she-devils, here come our girls. Good job, Sakura. I never doubted you for a second."

Sakura's cheeks grew scarlet from the unreserved praise from her jounin instructor. "Thanks, Kakashi-sensei…"

"Don't slack off now, Billboard Brow," Ino sniffed, "because I will be ready the next time we fight."

A warrior-like aura radiated from the green-eyed bookworm as she rounded her sight to cyan orbs. "Bring it."

The electronic board revealed a new set of names once the randomization was complete:

**INUZUKA KIBA **versus **UZUMAKI NARUTO**

The pointy-eared blond let loose a fang-toothed grin as his ears rose up. His adrenaline started to spike as he psyched himself up in excitement. "It's about time!" He turned down to his fox familiar, tightening the orange-clothed forehead protector that held his shaggy hair in place. "Doshaburi, I need you to stay up here. Be my eyes from up top, okay?"

The ocher-hued canine yipped in assent, but his steel-gray eyes displayed a small sadness. _'Are you sure, Master Naruto?'_

'_Positive,'_ he affirmed through their mental link. _'With what I got planned, I think you should stay up here.'_

"Don't worry, though," he avowed once more with a huge smile. "I won't be long. Trust me." Soon after hearing some well-wishes for good luck, he launched himself over the railing, followed by a series of front flips, and deftly landed onto the tiles below in a hunched-over crouch, black windbreaker with orange stripes racing down the arms fluttering open and exposing his black T-shirt.

His sharp eyes looked up at his opponent, who he had just heard snort. "What's the matter, Kitsune-kun?" Kiba snidely asked. "Giving yourself a handicap?" The brash dog-user perched his body on the railing and smirked. "Heh…Like you really need one, anyway. Come on, Akamaru! We got this in the bag, right?"

His small, white quadruped let loose a small bark, but it did not have a lot of confidence backed behind it, compared to his master.

Once Kiba landed with a heavy thud before his line of sight, Naruto righted himself and checked his claw-like nails. "Don't call it too early, Dog-Breath," the bewhiskered ninja coolly intoned. "You just might be the one picking your teeth off the floor when your head finishes polishing it." Here, he smirked to get a rise out of the canine-themed ninja…just like his sensei normally did to Gai.

His response was predictable, for the Inuzuka growled as he glared daggers in his direction. "We'll see. Come on! I've been itching for a fight, and I get to pummel you into the ground. It's a win-win for me!"

"If you two are ready," Hayate interjected after a fit of coughing, "then let this preliminary match begin!"

The shaggy-haired brunet did not need to get goaded to attack. Immediately, he got on all fours as a surge of chakra had reverberated about his frame and launched himself into a headlong charge.

Not one to be outdone, Naruto calmed himself down as he took note of the shortening distance between his adversary and him. The blue-eyed genin reasoned that Kiba merely acted on impulse to protect Hinata-chan's honor and wanted to retaliate.

'_But I didn't do anything to her…'_ he sweetly reflected. _'She sure did feel nice, though…'_ He pushed that thought aside. _'Gotta focus!'_

Within striking distance, the spiky-haired blond leapt into action by somersaulting over the charging Inuzuka's head and nimbly landed, spinning around to not expose his back to his opponent—a lesson learned from his jounin-sensei.

"Is that all you got, Kiba?" Naruto inquired with an uninterested expression as Kiba swiveled on a pivot to face him. "You're boring me." He then hummed in thought. "Maybe I'd get a better challenge if I fought Akamaru."

The brazen boy howled for Naruto's head as he spun in a whirling vortex of gray and white.

'_Was I really this bad before?'_ the last Uzumaki wondered in retrospection. He saw his past self in the boy that stood before him. _'Any simple little jab set me off like that?'_ He smirked as he used a small burst of wind to strafe to the side, narrowly dodging the incoming Tsuuga. _'I should piss off my foes like this more often…'_

"Hold still!" Kiba barked.

"Make me!" Naruto responded in a singsong tone.

The overconfident brunet procured a quartet of smoke bombs and hurled them at Naruto's feet. "Time for our special, Akamaru! Get ready!"

With a flash of white, an opaque cloud of gas erupted from the dark spheres when Naruto started to cough and gag a bit. He kept his cool as he stood rooted to the spot as the smoke enveloped him. It reminded him of the bout on the bridge all over again.

'_Well, when your sight is cut, then use your other senses…Thanks for the tip, Sensei…'_

Naruto concentrated and strained his elongated ears, now perked up and twitching, for any sounds of movement coming his way. He was not left with silence for long as he heard claws scrape against the hard tiles before scratching to a halt. _'That must be Akamaru waiting for me once I leave this damn smoke…'_

Almost at a ninety-degree angle from where he estimated Akamaru had positioned himself, a slight ruffling of clothing—probably a jacket—caught Naruto's attention and lashed out with his clawed digits, easily trapping Kiba's balled fist into his open one.

"You think this would have done me in?" Naruto coldly retorted as his grip never wavered. "Well, think again!" With a hefty bellow, he hurled the slightly taller dog-user out of the gas cloud. To up the ante, he summoned a Kage Bunshin to intercept Kiba's alabaster-furred friend.

'_Damn it…my chakra control is still shot to hell!'_ Naruto yelled from within, feeling the harsh tug on his reserves. Even if he restored his energy handling by about six percent, he still had a long way to go to return to normal…and have access of his Mokuton and Hyouton powers once more. _'Orochimaru…you will pay when I get stronger…'_ he vowed as a shadow of a sour look appeared and vanished just as quickly. There was no need to act all emotional.

That was best left for someone like Sasuke, even though the brooding brunet refused to admit it.

Anyway, for now, he had Suiton and Fuuton on which to rely, which should be more than enough to knock Kiba off his high horse. Using the Phantom Flame—the otherworldly fire granted to him by his neurotic tenant—in this situation would be overkill. He was not the goof-ball and dropout that everyone perceived him to be…not anymore, at least. _'Oh, well, time to kick it up a notch and show them what I can do…'_

Like a spinning top, Naruto twirled around twice and stayed in place, channeling wind-natured chakra to blow away the hazy fog. He wondered what held up his shadow clone, only to find out that, despite small scratches lining its arms, it managed to subdue the small puppy without petering out in white vapors.

"Huh…I think you misplaced something, Kiba," the jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Youko deadpanned. "What should I do with it? Hm…"

'_Man, I really need to stop acting like Kakashi-sensei…'_

Kiba gnashed together his teeth before pausing. Suddenly, he smirked as he perused his utility pouch situated on the back of his right hip. "I got a treat for you…" He whipped out another dark pellet, but Naruto noted that it had a blue coating.

'_A soldier pill?'_ the pointy-eared genin realized until it was too late. The capsule in question landed home in Akamaru's mouth. His ivory coat shifted to a carmine pelt before violently kicking his clone in the gut, dispelling him in the process, and bolted to his master. _'Oh, no wonder he's called Akamaru…'_

"You know, I'm really getting tired of all those little balls that you keep tossing around. Are you a juggler in secret, or are you inferring that you're…you know?" Naruto asked rather flippantly.

The shaggy-haired brunet snarled in disgust as he popped one into his own mouth, almost immediately spiking his chakra twofold. "Says the one who kissed Sasuke!" he snapped back.

That hit a sore spot with Naruto. "Th-that was an accident!" he indignantly sputtered. He had then cleared his throat to assume his pseudo-aloof nature. "Well, the same couldn't be said about your pretty hot sister, on the other hand…"

Now, Kiba started to see red. A boiling rage spilled over on his face. "I'm gonna put you six feet under, bastard! Akamaru, let's do this!"

"**Juujin Bunshin!"**

Right before Naruto's eyes, the red pup transformed into a perfect doppelganger of his master, who was now hunched over on Kiba's back and ready to pounce.

Naruto swallowed thickly as twin vortices encroached on his position…and fast. "I guess I hurt whatever was left of your little heap of pride…if there ever was any…"

XXXXXXXXXX

"That kid has quite the motor mouth on him, doesn't he?" Anko asked the Hokage while holding the headset's speaker away from her head. She was pretty impressed with his act of subjugating those tigers in the Forest of Death with his mere presence…in tandem with the Kyuubi's essence, of course. She owed him one for the save, even though she did not want to return the favor…well, maybe not now, at least.

Now, he taunted his foe to attack him while not expending a lot of energy in return. It was pretty clever, if she had to think on that.

"I'm afraid so, yes," Hiruzen muttered, sounding resigned, gazing at how adroitly his surrogate grandson spiraled between the whirling dervishes of fangs and claws. "Why else would he be called the Mouth that Roared?"

"I can think of three good reasons," the amethyst-haired kunoichi purred, licking her lips in a sensual fashion.

The Sandaime Hokage merely sighed, not really in the mood to hear such nonsense. He really wished he had his pipe, but alas, he had stashed it back in the Hokage Tower.

XXXXXXXXXX

Up in the rafters, Kurenai shook her head in resignation. "I think this match is just about over. There won't be a perfect run for your genin team."

Kakashi looked at her like she grew a second head. "Why's that? From what I can tell, I'm going for that perfect trio to make it into the final rounds."

"Looks like you're underestimating Kiba," the genjutsu expert of Konoha remarked in a condescending tone. "Once he's in that state, he channels twice as much chakra, which means he hits harder and runs faster. His senses are also sharper." She turned to the ashen-haired assassin. "Face it: this is where the buck stops for your little pet project."

"Naruto _will_ beat Kiba," Kakashi declared with steady conviction. "I assure you that Naruto has been holding back, waiting for his moment for your genin to slip up, and it looks like it's time for the closer." The upturned eye began to irritate the red-eyed beauty. "By the way, I'd like to have my cash up front, when you lose the bet."

Kurenai wondered just why Kakashi acted so hip and upbeat all the time…

'_Ugh!'_ she groaned inside her head. _'Gai's starting to rub off on me!'_ She kept telling herself that it was not due to the green jumpsuits that she and Asuma currently wore due to a luck-of-the-draw bet some time ago. Kakashi, the ever-lucky one after his string of misfortunes in the past, managed to bag three shinobi with special abilities—one with the Sharingan, one with _two_ rumored kekkei genkai, and a girl with a multiple personality disorder, which her bloodline ability was all along, plus clan-related techniques that greatly intrigued her to no end.

XXXXXXXXXX

For the majority of the fight, Uzumaki Naruto egged on Inuzuka Kiba into attacking him in a blind rage and effortlessly evaded most of the debilitating blows, minus a scratch here and there; nothing that the bizarre tenant in his gut could not handle.

He found it strangely out of place that his nine-tailed prisoner kept quiet for this entire time. He assumed that he was probably asleep or doing something that did not involve tormenting his charge. _'Maybe playing with puppets, but I don't think that'd make sense…'_

Either way, he was having fun. For a split second, he almost mimicked his adversary by using wind chakra to spin against the grinding tornadoes to create a bastardized variant of Kiba's special jutsu.

That gave him an idea to simmer on for later.

'**Don't play with your prey, boy…'**

'_Oh, so you're awake. Why the silent act all of a sudden?'_ Naruto blinked as he skidded to a stop from another barrage of slashes from the dog-using ninja.

The demon monarch shook its vermilion pelt and bristled as his maw gaped in a yawn. **'I was merely…observing…You are starting to become like me.'**

'_Is it due to our merging?'_ the blond asked as he rolled away from an angry swipe from either Kiba or Akamaru. Which one was up for debate.

'**Perhaps,'** he cryptically answered. **'Don't be too arrogant, lest you get knocked down a peg or two. Take it from me, runt: pride precedes the fall, and you are no different.'**

'_Okay…'_ His excitement had evened out somewhat after getting his spirits doused. He noted that there was a controlled frenzy in Kiba and Akamaru's attack patterns. The strategy seemed pretty clear-cut and simple: divide, conquer, and overwhelm through the numbers game.

Luckily, for Naruto, he could easily match that and then some…

'_Time to put an end to this fight…'_

With a shift of his fingers into the half-Tiger seals, he willed his chakra to manifest at least twenty copies to throw off the attacking duo. With a mental command, his copies went to work.

While his Kage Bunshin took some time for him to sit back and think, he channeled a bit of chakra into the tips of his fingers and fished into his utility pouch, feeling for a wide sheet of paper.

'_Almost…there…'_ Naruto rubbed against the sheet in question, with a few elevated spots etched onto it. _'Got it!'_

If Kiba's senses were heightened like his, then he knew that this would work…as sneaky and underhanded as it was. Well, they were ninja, he rationalized; deception slept beside their profession like a comforting lover.

Shoving aside the bombarding memories when his doppelgangers got forcefully dispersed, the blond enigma tapped his essence-enriched hand on the sheet of paper, and, with a distinct pop, pulled the mysterious object through the zipper.

XXXXXXXXXX

Morino Ibiki, commanding officer of the Konoha Torture and Interrogation Force, donned a surprised look on his face when he noticed a gray apparatus appear in the fighting blond's hand. _'Now, how in the blue hell did he get a hold of a gas mask? I thought we kept those locked up in ANBU inventory…'_

The boy was most certainly full of surprises. He just shook his head and grunted. _'You're surely a sly crook, Uzumaki Naruto…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Aforementioned blond ninja pulled the straps over his head and forced down the facial covering. "Here goes nothing," he softly grumbled as he dug deeper into his miniature tool bag, procuring three yellow-tinted spheres just as the last of his clones served their purpose.

There was a reason why he chose to keep Dosha-chan up above.

XXXXXXXXXX

Kurenai looked stunned beyond belief, if her wide eyes indicated anything. "Sulfur pellets?"

Asuma could not help but flinch for the ninja that would get the receiving end of that. "No…Looks like modified stink bombs…with sulfur as the base."

"Looks like this match…is in the bag," Kakashi evenly retorted, chuckling a bit at his own witty pun. Asuma joined in, albeit edgily.

Kurenai rubbed the skin above her nose, eyes closed.

Gai issuing his garbled platitudes and pats on the shoulder for comfort was definitely unwanted, in her opinion.

Asuma shifted his upper body in a lean toward Kakashi's ear. "Overkill, much?" he asked, hand cupped over his whisper.

Kakashi did not have to use his implanted Sharingan eye to tell how this would end. "Nah…"

XXXXXXXXXX

The bewhiskered genin unknowingly smirked when Kiba and Akamaru's tired eyes rounded on him, charging again on all fours.

"Sorry, Kiba," Naruto halfheartedly apologized, voice muffled from the apparatus and locked-in grin hidden from view, "but I gotta give you some humble pie that I've been baking for you. Watch out, now…" He then tossed the pellets in their trajectory path. "It's gonna smell…_stinky_…like, the rotten egg kind…"

The initial contact of the tiles to the volatile stink bombs set them off, emitting a yellow-greenish cloud of gas that obscured the blond's view from his attackers, who tried to stop their forward momentum, but got caught in the miasma of noxious odors. The sounds of gagging, choking and crying erupted in full force, followed by a loud poof, which might have been the end of Akamaru's transformation, Naruto assumed.

The unnerving cloud of sulfates lifted and evenly dispersed around the arena floor after a few seconds, leaving the real Kiba hacking up half his lung from the magnified contact, and Akamaru toppling over on one side, hind leg twitching and jerking any which way. He was not getting back up any time soon, the blond thought, trying his best to conceal his wince.

'_I'll give him a doggy treat, just to show him no hard feelings…'_ he willfully thought, but tried not to feel too cold-blooded.

Naruto took off his gas mask and stuffed it back into the storage seal and heaved an airy sigh. Now, he gazed at Kiba in a way that made him look rather threatening. Those blue eyes assumed a frosty edge from the dog-user's watery ones. "Time to put you out of your misery, too, Dog-Breath. Good run, though."

Following through, the pointy-eared ninja ran in a full sprint to meet the dazed boy head-on, dodging under a sluggish swipe as a shoddy means of defense as he invaded Kiba's personal space. Naruto's balled-up fist collided with his foe's jaw, easily knocking him back and off his feet.

The whisker-marks did not stop there. He summoned five Shadow Clones for his grand finale.

To keep the canine-themed ninja off balance, one clone performed a rounding sweep kick to heave Kiba's legs over his field of vision. "U!" it shouted.

Another clone slid under the shaggy brunet to deliver a powerful thrust kick, driving the now-semi-conscious boy five meters into the air. "Zu!" it bellowed afterward.

The original Naruto piggybacked off one of his awaiting clones to launch himself into the air for a bit of hang time while another clone rushed in and hopped off the downed copy's sandal to bump Kiba higher. "Ma!" it screamed at the top of its lungs, delivering a swift uppercut for emphasis.

The authentic one stuck a bit to the wall at the distance where he thought he would meet the dazed Inuzuka as the last clone grabbed Kiba's legs and, with a twisted corkscrew flip, sent him even higher, but upright this time. "Ki!" it exclaimed in burning determination.

Seeing Kiba's chest now exposed, the genuine-article Uzumaki Naruto zipped off the wall right under the rafters to meet him in his element as he fell a few meters.

Powered by wind-natured chakra, Naruto twisted like a drill before having his feet find a home in Kiba's chest cavity. One unyielding kick landed on the mark with a cry of, "Naruto," followed by another wind-enchanted leg that made a bone groan in protest, but it did not fracture with another word to this vicious combo, "Reppuu…"

The last rotating flip kick, again backed by the power of the zephyrs, found its way to Kiba's skull, driving him into the unforgiving tiles below with Naruto finishing the name of his ninjutsu and taijutsu mixture, "Rendan!"

Kiba's body bounced once for good measure, before he had remained still, prostrate and unmoving. Naruto had then slowed his descent before dropping in a crouch, kunai withdrawn from his holster, ready to pounce from about a meter away from his downed opponent.

Gekkou Hayate looked on for a few seconds, rather awed at the performance, before walking up and checking the downed ninja's vital signs. He was beaten up pretty badly, but he would pull through with a little rest and relaxation.

"The winner of this match," the sickly shinobi muttered as he made a referee-like gesture with his right arm, thumb tucked into the palm and all four digits flat, and pointed in Naruto's direction, "is Uzumaki Naruto…"

"Yahoo!" he crowed as he leapt in the air with a pumped fist. Before he got too into celebrating, he gave his ocher-furred familiar—who now stood at Sakura's feet—a sidelong glance, conveying that he would get his time to shine in the later appeal rounds. For further emphasis, he gave Doshaburi a thumbs-up. "Don't worry, buddy. You'll get your time in the spotlight."

"As much as I love to see you congratulate yourself," Hayate cut in, "but we have to keep things moving right along."

"Oh, sorry," Naruto said, looking sheepish with his nervous smile. "My bad."

XXXXXXXXXX

Kiba, now coming to, groaned when the medic team picked Akamaru and him up on the stretcher to be taken away and examined for any lasting injuries. His mind restlessly wandered back to the fight.

He underestimated Uzumaki Naruto too much; he thought little of him and paid the price for that inner pride.

'_I thought too high of my limits…and the bastard had to cut me down to size…'_

His sharp canines grated on each other as he stewed in his inner thoughts, miffed that Fox-Boy resorted to a dirty trick to win, but that would have been calling a spade a spade. He had performance-enhancing pills to gain the upper hand, but it was all for naught; the other ninja had enough raw strength to keep the ball in his court the entire time, just for a show of humiliation. He would have taken into account Akamaru, but Naruto had his own furry familiar at his beck and call, even though the blond opted to not use him. He grimaced when his ribs ached in protest. _'I can see why…Well played, Naruto, but believe me: the next time we face off, I will beat you…'_

For the moment, he did not feel certain in his resolve. He had a feeling deep within his gut that Naruto has not tapped into his full power…or, quite possibly, could not quite access it, whatever it was. Either way, it was better to have him as an ally than an enemy of the state.

As the medical ninja trotted them off, he caught sight of Hinata out of his peripheral vision. She probably walked up to check on him, anyway.

"Hey, stop…" he weakly mumbled, but loud enough for the beige-colored shinobi to halt.

He saw…well, sensed a small hint of fear coming off her.

"Kiba-kun, you're hurt," she murmured with a mother-like concern.

"I'll be fine, Hinata," he assured. "It's actually you that I'm worried about." He wheezed a bit as he steadied his breaths. "Listen, in the event that you have to face Neji, forfeit the match…for your own safety…"

Something must have sparked within her small frame when her posture shifted into a battle-ready mode. "This is something that I must do, Kiba-kun," he heard Hinata declare with an uncharacteristic calm lining her countenance, most of the fear dissipating almost immediately.

Energy spent, the dog-user rested his head on the hammock-like gurney as the medical staff carted them off.

XXXXXXXXXX

The Hyuuga maiden had conflicting reflections over that last preliminary match.

Naruto-kun had the battle in his pocket ever since the opening attack. Inwardly, though, she felt compelled to remain neutral in the bout, for she could not decide for whom to cheer—Kiba, who was her teammate, or Naruto, the person for whom she had high hopes…the one that she admired…and was also her friend.

Once the match concluded, she made her way down to check up on Kiba.

Said canine-themed ninja had then tried to dissuade her from confronting Neji-niisan; something she now settled to do, which was to take matters into her own hands.

Through this journey of self-improvement, Hyuuga Hinata felt her changing determination bloom from deep within her. She felt stronger; even her teammates had noticed her increasing drive to adapt to all sorts of predicaments and overcome with what little resources she acquired up to this point.

After Kiba and Akamaru were taken away, she glanced up at the rafters, silently bearing witness to a cheery, bouncy blond and his energy-fueled rehash of his fight. Sakura-san looked like she wanted to slug him in the shoulder…or in the face.

She had a feeling that Naruto sensed eyes on him, for he rounded on her and gazed into her opalescent eyes, which exuded a strange tranquility, only for her to give him a pretty withering glare before following up with a slight wink. He hurt her comrade, but there were not any hard feelings.

With a single blip of the monitor above that gigantic set of hands fixed in the Ram seal, ice dropped into Hinata's gut, but swallowed to keep down the bile.

It must have been a sick twist of fate.

XXXXXXXXXX

'_Girls sure are weird,'_ Naruto bemusedly thought, trying to decipher what was up with Hinata-chan's unspoken signals. _'Maybe she means, "You beat up my teammate, but I forgive you for taking it easy on him?" Was that what she was getting at?'_ He pursed his lips to mull over that.

However, before he spoke up, the ping from the electronic board took away his attention. Then, his mouth etched into a thin line. _'Uh-oh…'_

She got paired up to lock horns with last year's Rookie of the Year…Hyuuga Neji…

XXXXXXXXXX

Now set and ready to go, the two Byakugan wielders stared at one another without blinking. Hinata, the underdog of this fight, had a serene look donned upon her smooth face, while the callous Neji held within him a restrained, sub-zero rage that threatened to mar his hardened features.

The elder Hyuuga then took in his opponent's facial expressions.

The exiled daughter of the clan head had an atypical calmness around the eyes, which shone with an odd focus that somehow maintained that elegant look. That same look made his blood boil; it made him want to knock all of that out of her to show her that she would _never_ defy destiny.

"I'm glad to have this match with you…Hinata-_sama_," the brunet bit in a chilling manner.

He then noticed her eyes slightly alter, almost like she…pitied him. "It doesn't have to end this way, Neji-niisan," the smaller of the two softly uttered, low enough to keep out unwanted eavesdroppers.

Apparently, the Juuken genius allowed her olive-branch approach to pass through one ear and out the other. "What gives you the right to dictate what fate has decreed?" he scathingly asked. "You will fall before me, if you do not back down!"

"…I see that you are hurting, brother," the heiress in limbo tenderly remarked, feeling her confidence grow in leaps and bounds. "Let me take away some of that burden…that hatred that you harbor from within…"

His plan to demoralize and force the girl to forfeit by using words alone started to slip from his fingers like running one's hand through a stream of water. His rage and murderous intent spiked to a fever pitch. He snarled and prepared to dash at her until a single finger easily held him back.

The proctor of the preliminaries was not amused by this boy's childish behavior, along with his unilateral grudge against the Main Branch Hyuuga. He felt the need to stop the boy, and to not brook any further arguments, his sickly composure belied his true strength, and wanted that to be known to Neji. "I believe I didn't officially commence the match," he evenly intoned. "You make one more move without my permission again, and I'll have you disqualified…immediately…"

The branded Hyuuga prodigy seethed, almost to the point of frothing at the mouth, lest he lose his cool and aloof demeanor. "What's this?" he hissed, cracks already forming in his distant nature. "More preferential treatment allowed to the Main Branch Hyuuga?" He bared his teeth into a jeer.

"No," the ailing swordsman calmly responded, letting go of the boy's bandaged forehead, "I'm just keeping things fair. After I signal the start of the match, you can fight it out. Is that clear?"

With that clearly hashed out, Hinata assumed a commanding stance as she bent low to the ground at the knees, pouch of water tucked near her right hip and held out her right hand, palm flat and perpendicular to her frame and right palm extended upward and taking on the hypnotic sway of a slithering serpent.

Her voice was as still as a peaceful ocean before the unsuspecting tidal wave. "I will try to resolve our issues through civil and peaceful means, for that is my way of the ninja. On this, I vow, Neji-niisan." Her pearl-colored eyes glimmered like the reflected light of a full moon, harmonic resonance washing over her body as she channeled chakra to her optical nerves to activate her bloodline gift. "Commence!" It was time to fight for that never-ending struggle for inner peace. It was time to put her newfound beliefs to the test in order to get through to her genetic half-sibling.

The long-haired brunet quickly matched her battle-ready posture with one of his own—the traditional Gentle Fist ingrained within him since when he could walk. His eyes, a grayish-white set of Byakugan, had burned with the white-hot intensity of a scorching sun. "Don't say I didn't tell you to turn back…" In a flash, the world around him flushed into a panoramic view on all sides, in varying shades of black, white and gray.

With a knife-edged chop from Hayate's fast-descending right hand to signal the start of the match, the two combatants closed the distance and put their creeds on the line.

XXXXXXXXXX

"I can almost taste the tension from all the way up here," Kakashi said rather flatly as the duo began to trade blows with one another, expertly dodging glowing palms in a fluid grace. It left him a bit mesmerized at how smooth and precise the Juuken-ryuu really was. It had been a while since he had last seen the Gentle Fist in actual combat, though.

Kurenai let loose a dejected sigh. "I was afraid of this…" She had then seen Hinata putting a bit of distance between Neji and her. To the brunette's surprise, she saw the smaller Hyuuga pop the cork of a sack-like water canteen. "Huh? What is she about to do?" Neither Kiba nor Shino told her just how far Hinata had pushed herself before entering this rigorous examination.

Naruto released an uneasy chuckle. "Oh, that?"

The genjutsu mistress of Konoha rounded on him faster than he thought possible. "You better explain yourself, Uzumaki Naruto…"

Naruto's face scrunched up, quite easily emulating that of a vulpine. "What's with the third degree, and why do you want to grill me of all people, Kurenai-sensei?" he whined in his usual fashion.

"It's because I might land myself in hot water with the Hyuuga elders!"

"I thought that Hiashi all but disowned her," Kakashi clearly interjected.

"That was what I heard!" Gai boomed with righteous passion.

"Well," the blond spoke up on his friend's behalf, kindly tuning out the other two male jounin, "it still is a form of the Gentle Fist, but with some…outdated adjustments…"

"Like what?" She spoke louder above the sounds in the arena.

"Even I'm not too sure about the inner workings and all that, but it emphasizes on an offensive defense." He touched the area around the heart. "I've seen and felt it firsthand. When she's focused, she can overwhelm you pretty quickly." A thoughtful look passed through the blond's face. "Don't sleep on her, though. She's gotten tougher, no doubt, but she still has a soft side. She shows mercy, which is very admirable, all things considered."

Sakura and Ino, feud now on temporary hiatus, could tell that Naruto spoke from the heart on that one.

'_If only Sasuke-kun could think like that…'_ they both dreamily pondered at the same time.

XXXXXXXXXX

Hinata plunged into her reservoir of chakra to will the power of her nature through the canteen of water. Deftly flying through a set of hand seals, she landed on the Seal of the Dog over the opened top, forcing out the liquid into a flowing stream. She urged the energy-induced torrent to envelop her hands, creating twin whip-like extensions that soothingly spiraled around them with threatening power.

"**Suiton: Shokushu Fuka!"**

The newly revealed Tentacle Appendages snaked around, swirling this way and that, and it caused Neji to actually pause and rethink how to disable his cousin's tenketsu with those writhing whips of water encasing her hands like protective cocoons.

'_Now, how to bypass those things…'_

They looked ready to lash out at anything that crept into Hinata's range of divination.

The energy was dense around those tentacle-like extensions, upon close examination with his Byakugan. He all but strained to see the now-dimmed chakra points over the bright concentration of essence.

He would have to try the direct approach to meet her head-on.

As soon as he tried to close the distance, those serpentine whips coiled around her frame with the turning of her hands before she spun on a pivot, letting the water gush out in controlled twists and almost checked him in the face, had he not skillfully evaded the precise strike with a quick head jerk to the right. With a burst of speed backed by chakra fueling his stride, he almost landed a palm strike into her chest to disrupt her stomach. Nevertheless, the excommunicated heiress guided the water to intercept the blow, nullifying the impact like a gooey cushion. He then had to back away with a handspring as the seemingly sentient appendage attempted to grab at his ankle for a sweep.

'_So they extend the range of her attack radius…Interesting…'_ It would be in his best interest to not lose his cool in the match, even though he felt the urge to humiliate her for the sins of her father. For now, this new, mysterious Hinata before him looked on, as calm as a placid lake…

He wanted to dissect and analyze her attack patterns, but for the moment, he could not point out any glaring weaknesses to exploit.

The brunet thought he heard a boisterous loudmouth root on his cousin, even though the results of the match always favored him in the end.

'_I guess I have no other choice but force her to wall me while I wear out her reserves,'_ he mentally calculated in resolution. _'I know I have the higher chakra capacity, so my endurance should hold out long enough for me to disable those tenketsu…'_

It was time to put his thoughts into action…and he vowed that it was his destiny to win.

XXXXXXXXXX

When five minutes elapsed, Hyuuga Neji inwardly stewed in his ire at this stalemate.

He wondered just how, exactly, was this…loser…evading his precise and carefully calculated blows.

That pathetic weakling gracefully dodged his blows and batted back his hands with that damnable water in her canteen at the same time. In the back of his mind, he knew that, even though Hinata's stances and fluid moves appeared to be as soft as that kami-forsaken liquid tucked away under her arm, those blows—were they to connect—would be powerful enough to overcome even rigid rocks. He also pondered on her circular movements; she always kept him in her line of sight and never had her back to him.

He knew that she was reaching her breaking point, for he saw some strain in her eyes, in addition to some hard breathing.

"You cannot win, Hinata-_sama_," he calmly uttered, cold malice running thickly through his lightly panting voice. "You're at your limit."

Those annoying eyes changed again to that forgiving stare, which almost caused him to lose it. "Like me, you have also fought against fate, Neji-niisan," she calmly intoned, stance still holding firm and on guard and liquid limbs swaying about. "However, we can change our situation…for the both of us—for the clan—and my **Shugohakke: Kyokuryuu no Mai** proves it."

"For the clan, you say?" Neji let loose a frigid snort as his eyes tried to burn a hole through her. "The clan took my father away!"

A look of sympathy graced her face before her mouth assumed a thin line. _'I feel that way, too, Neji-niisan…more than you know…however…'_

"The difference between us is that I've found the key to the cage," she spared a look at her blue-eyed savior, who looked stunned for a brief second, before pushing onward by staring back at her cousin, for Neji needed to hear this from the horse's mouth, "while you have become content with being a prisoner moaning about his plight, brother." The bitter truth stung, but she felt the courage to utter what was weighing on her mind.

His mounting anger, once a slow simmer, began to froth over like scalding-hot water once he crossed the line of rage.

"You are within my range of Hakke…" Neji's frigid voice grated out near the indigo-haired kunoichi's ears.

Hinata neither saw the adrenaline-fueled dash into her guard nor the rain of blazing taps across her body as she felt her chakra pathways shut down almost instantly, forcing her to release the levitating water onto the tiled floor with a loud splash, now that her chakra had been blocked. Her vision swam as she tried to stay upright, but with all the energy spent, she fell over like a blade of grass in the wind, Byakugan now deactivated.

"Hinata-chan!" she heard Naruto roar above the churning murmurs of the crowd before she started to succumb to the dark throes of unconsciousness.

Closing her eyes, she saw the fang-toothed boy practically fly toward her at untold speeds. _'I hope I have changed enough, Naruto-kun…and I'm sorry for losing…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

The blue-eyed genin did not know how he ended up next to Hinata, but as she started to fall over, tunnel vision overcame his senses as he rushed over the railing and clutched the kunoichi before her head had the chance to bounce off the linoleum.

He did not care if his interference had disqualified her; the victor had already been decided.

He easily shoved out the ruling of the match in Neji's favor as he nursed the indigo-haired girl in his arms. "Hinata-chan, it'll be okay…" He felt the wrist joint, trying his best to ignore the bruising dots riddling her skin, and was fortunate to feel a pulse, causing him to breathe a sigh of relief. "Rest, now…You did great…" He motioned for the medics to come and pick her up. "Come on, you sacks of lead! Double-time it, now!"

His ears twitched when he heard an emotionless snort from behind him. "That goes to show you, urchin, that you cannot defy your fate. Face the facts: a loser will always be a loser."

Naruto said nothing, but he stood up, facing away from the older shinobi, and handed off the unconscious—but stable—girl to the medical corps on standby. Once in their hands, he slowly turned around to face Hinata's assailant. The look he showed the older boy promised lots and lots of pain. "Not if, but _when_ we face each other in the arena, I will beat you so hard into the ground that when I spit on your head, you'll grow a few centimeters…and maybe a brain, if need be."

"Don't waste your breath, you weakling," Neji sniffed. "You're out of my league."

"If it means beating up on girls and putting them down like the misogynist you are," the blue-eyed enigma retorted, teeth exposed and threatening to growl, "then yeah, I'm way out of your league, you white-eyed bastard."

A looming hostility permeated the atmosphere around the two ninja before Naruto felt a presence zip in between them. A forest-toned green invaded his vision as Rock Lee crouched down in front of him in an exaggerated three-point stance, left arm stiffly held out, like he was ready to throw down.

"Naruto-kun, we should save our strength for the finals," Lee mentioned matter-of-factly. "It will not matter who faces Neji. Between you or me, there shall be no hard feelings for whatever chance has decided."

The last of the Uzumaki looked down at Lee and then at his target across the arena floor. Uttering an animalistic growl, Naruto sneered at him like a beast off its leash before walking off, back up to the rafters. He could have sworn that he saw just a slight rise in Neji's eyes before he resumed with his detached persona. _'He reminds me too much of Sasuke…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

The last two match-ups seemed to blur right after the taxing emotions running through Naruto's head finally subsided.

The eerie shinobi, Gaara, was pitted against the brash and loudmouthed Oto genin, Abumi Zaku, and, needless to say, the latter never walked away from that fight.

The lifeless eyes of Suna's hidden weapon never blinked as his attentive sand blocked the Sound ninja's sonic air waves with relative ease. As the boredom and bloodlust swelled, the Ichibi jinchuuriki willed his Mother's gift to encapsulate the then-screaming street-punk, muffling his cries to give up.

With a single, clenching fist, the room grew still. The silence was so loud that a kunai dropping would have sounded like rolling thunder. Some of the genin looked away when blood began to ooze out of the grainy pupa.

Team Sound was officially out of the competition.

Gaara swirled into dust before reappearing next to the ones who shared blood with him. Mother's craving was sated…for now.

The final match picked up steam, since it was not one-sided. Kankurou, the budding puppeteer from Sunagakure, and Tenten, the weapons aficionado from Konohagakure, squared off in an extraordinary deadlock. The last member of Team Gai used her cunning in the fight to land the knockout, but the face-painted shinobi had a few tricks up his sleeve…or, in the case of his three-eyed, four-armed puppet, Karasu, hidden in its joints.

The weapons-oriented girl saw through the clunky movements with her keen eyesight, and retaliated by sending a kunai past the body and nailing the bandages on its back, pegging the puppeteer's shoulder with a hiss. When the bun-haired brunette nicked him in the shoulder through the bundle where he positioned himself at the start of the match, Kankurou managed to pull a chakra string to let his battle marionette launch a few poisoned needles which found their way into Tenten's knee. Feeling her body beginning to lock up due to the poison, she had to hurry. She had then kept Kankurou at a far enough distance for her to set up her **Soushouryuu**, a particularly lethal jutsu that had within it a salvo of any and all pointed objects Tenten sealed away in her scrolls to fling at the enemy.

Before going down due to the toxin, and before the puppet-user could block, Tenten beaned Kankurou in the chest with an accurate shot from a soaring meteor hammer and shattered a few ribs, which allowed the kunoichi to scrape for a double knockout. Since both competitors were unable to battle, the match was declared a draw, and with no winner, both were unable to make the qualifying rounds to the finals.

Baki, the jounin-sensei assigned to the Yondaime Kazekage's children, held back a wince. With Kankurou out of commission, that meant that he would lose a vital soldier for the invasion.

Temari, on the other hand, displayed unmasked concern for her brother when he got smashed by that blunt-forced weapon. The redheaded kid, sadly, showed no outward display of emotion. Having multiple assassination attempts on his life growing up tended to give him…a warped perspective on the reason he lived in the first place.

Once the match had concluded, and both worthy fighters were taken to get immediate treatment, the Hokage called the remaining candidates for possible promotion to the floor, now pockmarked with cracks and potholes galore.

Hiruzen calmly gazed at the remaining ninja: Uzumaki Naruto, who had a slight scowl on his face and Doshaburi resting on his head; Nara Shikamaru, who looked rather thoughtful; Sabaku no Gaara, who appeared bored; Hyuuga Neji, who donned an impassive visage that did not reveal what he was thinking, at all; Rock Lee, who could not contain his excitement as his shoulders twitched in jitters; Haruno Sakura, who seemed content on making it one step closer to improving herself; Aburame Shino, whose look could not be determined due to the high cowl obscuring his face and dark-tinted sunglasses that kept away his eyes from the world; and Temari, whose hazel-green eyes glanced around at the competition.

'_Hm…'_ the Third Fire Shadow pondered. _'Including Uchiha Sasuke, we have seven from Konoha—with a full rookie genin cell, no less, which is unprecedented—and two from Suna…'_

"To all of you who won the rights to compete in the third-round test of the Chuunin Selection Examinations…" Hayate announced before coughing to clear his lungs, "one of you is missing, but…congratulations to you all!"

XXXXXXXXXX

The jounin instructors stood up on the rafters to take in the remainder of the entrants—out of the seventy-two that entered, only one-eighth were left standing.

Meanwhile, Kakashi had a nagging feeling in the back of his mind that something was going on.

"Say, guys, if I miss anything important, be sure to relay it to me later," he distractedly said before channeling his energy into a hand seal. "I…have to go check on something…" With that, he activated the ever-so-handy Shunshin no Jutsu to propel himself to incredible bursts of speed to Konoha Hospital.

"What's gotten into him?" Asuma asked once the awkward moment passed.

The other two jounin shrugged, not knowing anything, either.

The ice-producing kunoichi considered following her savior's mentor, and, without a sound or anyone thinking the wiser, Haku summoned a mirror of crystalline ice, jumped back, and vanished.

XXXXXXXXXX

The swordsman asked for permission to explain the next segment, but the Sandaime wanted to take things over from here.

"As I told you before," Hiruzen piped up, getting the attention of the participants, "in the main event, your performance matches will be seen by everybody. Each of you will fight to represent the strength of your countries. I'd like you all to show what you are made of, which is why the finals…will be held one month from now, on the seventh of August."

"You mean…" Sakura appeared hopeful, "we're not going to do it right now?"

The Professor imperceptibly nodded as he slowly moved a few paces to the right. "This break from action, you can say, will be used for preparations, meaning, in addition to notifying the feudal lords and shinobi leaders abroad on this event, we're giving this time for you to prepare yourselves." Seeing a confused look from Rock Lee, the Sandaime Hokage pressed on. "I'm sure that some of you have already revealed your entire arsenal you have for right now. This month off will give you some time to formulate strategies by what you already know about your possible opponents. There are those who faced off against a tough foe and came out injured. So, in sum, take a break now and again to rest your bones and come up with plans on how to cope in these combat-type situations."

The befuddled gazes thrown his way started to fade away. "And that's the way it is…Now, then, I'd like to dismiss you, but there's something else I must do that is for the final trial…"

Naruto urged himself to keep quiet, even though he wanted to protest and get down to training as soon as possible.

"Anko is coming around with a box filled with slips of paper, so each of you, take one."

"I'll come around, so wait your turn," she spoke as if she wanted to get out of there, too.

After the lady snake-charmer went down the line (and giving Naruto a wink, which made him shudder), Hiruzen droned on, with Ibiki now at his side. "So, you all have slips of paper. Now, starting from left to right, I'd like you to tell me the number on them."

Naruto was the first up. "I've got one, like always." He showed off his pearly-whites for good measure.

Shikamaru sighed. "It's three."

Gaara listlessly uttered, "Five…"

Neji calmly answered, "Two."

Lee let out a boisterous whoop, "Eight!"

Sakura perked up a bit. "I have seven."

Shino's eyebrows jutted upward. "Nine."

Temari grunted. "Four."

Ibiki now looked at his scribbling on the sheet of paper. "That means he's number six, then…"

"Great!" The Hokage beamed while he clapped his hands into a cup. "I will now reveal to you…the final tournament!"

Stupefied looks zoomed around the participants as the realization dawned on them.

"You mean to tell me we've drawn slots for our opponents next month?" the lazy genius shouted, showing another side of him other than sheer boredom.

"Now, Ibiki," the Sandaime intoned, ignoring the outbursts with a smile, "show them the arrangements of the matches."

And showed them, he did. He twisted his wrist to show the brackets on the clipboard.

First up on the roster of chuunin hopefuls that were chosen to duke it out were Uzumaki Naruto and…Hyuuga Neji.

The blue-eyed genin's frame radiated determination. _'Me…against that bastard who thinks he's so tough?'_ He turned to glare into the other boy's profile. _'Bring it on!'_

The long-haired brunet, however, had one word going through his head as he smirked. _'Perfect…'_ Now, he would show the class clown what it meant to fall by the hands of fate.

Following their match, the lazy deer-rancher, Nara Shikamaru, had to go one-on-one with the Desert Flower, Temari.

'_Ugh…'_ he groaned with a hand dragging down his face. _'Of all the match-ups, I gotta face off against a girl?'_ He would protest, but complaining was too troublesome, and he could not be bothered. _'Well,'_ he turned to see Sakura sweat profusely, _'at least I know who my next opponent is going to be…'_

Next up on the role call were Gaara and Uchiha Sasuke, which probably was the headline match in the upcoming month—the last of the Uchiha versus the coldhearted Yondaime Kazekage's son. A strange look overcame Gaara's face and shifted his body language to match it.

Standing alone in the bracket was the Shadow Blossom, Haruno Sakura, who would take on the winner of the last set—either between Aburame Shino…or her part-time mentor, Rock Lee.

She felt uneasy, for some reason. Either way, she could possibly lose against one or the other, since she not only had less chakra potential than those two, but, being males, they had more resilience and bounced back when things got tough. Shino had the power to zap her dry from a distance, and Lee had the force to pound her into mush.

"Well, then," the wizened leader of the Hidden Leaf chimed in after a small period of reflection, "you're free to start strategizing or resting, if you like. With this, I'll dismiss you…unless you have any questions?"

"Can I ask one?" Shikamaru droned with a limp hand up.

"Why, yes! Go ahead, Shikamaru-kun."

"Since this is a tournament, there can only be one winner, right? Which means only one person can ascend to the chuunin rank, correct?"

"No," Hiruzen quickly uttered in response, grasping his hands behind his back, "that's not quite it. You see, there will be judges, which will consist of the Kazekage, lords of various countries that will make mission requests, other ninja leaders, and me, who will be watching the final trial. Throughout the tournament, we will be evaluating your skills. Those judged to have the required qualities of a chuunin will be promoted to that rank, even if he—or she—does not win the first match."

"So," Temari decided to supply some input, "you mean that everyone will have a shot to be a chuunin?"

"Yes," the Hokage answered, turning to the dirty blonde, "but, on that same regard, there is the chance that none of you will become chuunin. To advance in the tournament means you get more opportunities to appeal to the judges if you have what it takes to ascend the ninja ranks." His sharp eyes landed squarely back to the pineapple-haired genin. "Do you understand, Shikamaru-kun?"

'_Geez, man,'_ he sourly ruminated, feeling as if he had gotten a roundabout answer, _'what a hassle…'_

"Well, then, thanks for all the efforts you exuded for these phases. You are all dismissed until a month from now!" the wrinkled Fire Shadow boomed with gusto.

XXXXXXXXXX

At around five o'clock that evening, and after getting released to rest up or train, Naruto and Sakura looked around for two familiar faces around the arena, only to turn up empty.

"You don't see either Kakashi-sensei or Haku-chan, do you, Sakura?" the blond asked the rosette, only to get a non-verbal 'no' from her.

"They're gone. What do you think happened?" Somehow, she had a feeling welling up beneath her veins that something was amiss.

"No clue, but we shouldn't let their absence eat up our preparation time!" Naruto cheekily added to ease the odd sensation growing deep in his gut. "But first, I think I'll go see Hinata-chan at the hospital, just to see if she's okay."

Just as he was about to leave, his teammate made him stop in his tracks. "You worry about her, don't you?" Sakura innocently asked.

"Wouldn't you be if you were her friend?" the whisker-marks countered. "Or in the worst-case scenario: what if you were the one laid up in bed due to an opponent you couldn't beat?"

"…You got a point," Sakura conceded. "I'll go see if I can track down Haku-neesan." She turned to walk away. "I'll be seeing you…"

"Yeah…sure…" he absentmindedly tacked on after she already departed. _'Something's in the air…and I don't like it…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Thirty minutes later, the bewhiskered genin, with fox familiar in tow, ambled through the doors of Konoha Hospital to see if his friend had any visitors.

"What?" he lowly croaked, trying his best not to yell to respect the wards. "What do you mean she can't have any guests?"

"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun, but Hinata-sama is being treated right now," the receptionist, a mousy-brown-haired civilian, apologetically relayed to him. "Maybe you can come by tomorrow, if you'd like."

He then let loose a tired huff. "Is Sasuke ready to see visitors, too, Natsuki-neechan?"

The desk clerk, Yamashita Natsuki, mimicked his action. "I'm sorry, but he isn't allowed any visitors, either."

"Why can't I see my bro, if I can't see my friend?" the blond practically demanded.

"…" She skittishly looked around, eyes frantically darting to notice something that Naruto could not. "I'm not at liberty to discuss it."

'_Well, time for the trump card…'_ The blue-eyed genin threw on his sad, puppy-dog look that appeared more like a kicked fox, instead. "You're not going to say, even for little ol' me, Natsuki-neechan?" For collateral, he picked up his tawny canine and presented her to him. "Not even for Dosha-chan, either?"

He could see the woman's face try to give way to spill the details, but she did not relent. "Even if I could, Naruto-kun, I might lose my job over it."

"Oh…" A sheepish grin broke through on his face, placing his fox kit atop his cranium. "Sorry. If it would get you in trouble, then I won't bother…"

"Ah, so you're buttering up the receptionist, Naruto…"

The flat remark made the boy round on his heels to see his jounin mentor. "Kakashi-sensei, what brings you here?"

"I half-expected you to lose your cool and wake up the sleeping occupants," he added, cheery eye-smile and all, and completely ignoring the question.

Naruto then sniffed the air and could tell that his instructor got rattled due to his heightened hormone levels. "Got into a fight?"

'_Damn him and his nose…'_ Kakashi mentally grumbled. "Don't worry about that. It's none of your concern for right now," he casually, but quickly, replied, once again deflecting a straightforward answer.

The blond then hummed. "I don't know what's eating you, but I hope it got straightened out." He missed his sensei's twitch of the lips. "While you're here, mind if I ask you something?" he prompted.

"I had a feeling you were going to ask me to train you, but…" The Copy Ninja began to rub the back of his scalp.

Naruto steadily frowned. "You're going to train the brooding bastard, aren't you?" He crossed his arms in petulant defiance. "I'm hurt, Sensei."

'_I hope he's not trying to trick me through guilt…'_ the gray-haired shinobi tried to assure himself, but seeing the defeated appearance on Naruto's face…left him feeing weird, like he should not be playing favorites. "Hm…I got about ten minutes before your assigned tutor comes, so why don't you come with me out back?" This just might allow some clemency from his late mentor's son. _'I'm sorry, Jiraiya-sama, but I think that I should be the one to show him…_that _jutsu…'_

"Really?" the boy asked, eyes lighting up like sapphires, until sense dawned on him. The twinkle in eyes dimmed a bit. "Wait, assigned tutor?"

"Well, I have my reasons for not training you, if you're willing to listen as we stroll around back, to the courtyard." He started walking at a sedate pace. "If you want answers, then I suggest you follow."

Noting to himself that he remained rooted to the spot, Naruto quickly shook himself from his reverie. "Oh, coming!"

The demon vessel of Konoha walked alongside his jounin instructor as he hashed out his explanations.

It boiled down to two, very simple ones, really.

First of all, unlike Neji, Gaara was an unstable shinobi who killed a ninja in the preliminaries…in front of a rather large audience, no less. The second reason was that he had unerring faith in Naruto's potential to trounce the Hyuuga prodigy when the time came. To hear that kind of praise from his sensei spoke volumes.

"Do you really think so, Sensei?" he inquired, disbelief leaking all throughout his voice.

"Of course," the son of the White Fang nonchalantly replied. "I always believe in your power, but I feel that Sasuke is going to need a slight edge to penetrate that armor of sand that Gaara possesses." He then turned to his sunny-blond charge as he slowed his gait. "If you run into Gaara, by chance, I'm sure that you can stall for time until help arrives." _'Besides, he can always soak that kid's sand and render him useless for a moment or two to breathe…'_

The older ninja scoped around. "This looks like a good spot…" he murmured before coming to a complete stop.

"Good spot for what, Sensei?"

"Watch…"

The Copy Ninja calmly took his left hand and tightly grasped his right wrist, as his right palm blossomed from a fist. With a small grunt of exertion, he began to funnel chakra between his digits. Naruto watched on, in awestruck amazement, as the dense energy coalesced into a chaotic sphere of intense power, even though it was the size of an apple. The sphere spiraled around an imaginary axis just above the caster's palm before he willfully dispersed it.

Naruto, for lack of a better phrase, was tongue-tied. "Wow," was all he could say.

"This is your project, Naruto," Kakashi said as he balled his fist to loosen the tingling sensation. "I know that you probably won't get it right the first go-round, because it builds up like a set of blocks. The key to this technique follows a three-step method that focuses on speed, power, and rotation."

"What's it called?" the blond asked rather excitedly.

"Hold the phone. I'm not done, yet," the Copy Ninja retorted. "Anyway, take your time to craft this jutsu. My sensei, the Yondaime, perfected this technique in three years, and he is this jutsu's creator."

'_Tou-chan created that?'_ To be privy to learn a jutsu his father made must have meant something to his own mentor. "Don't you mean completed?" Naruto asked, nonplussed and it reflected as such on his face.

"Ah, I was getting to that." Kakashi then began to rub the cloth covering his chin. "Actually, no, he didn't complete it before he…died…" Somber tone now out of the way, the ashen-haired shinobi pressed on. "Anyway, Minato-sensei wanted to add his own element into this jutsu to complete it, but he never had the time, due to pressing matters."

"…You're not going to tell me the name of it, are you?" Naruto asked in a perfect imitation of his sensei's own deadpan.

"Nope!" he chirped. "You have to figure it out on your own." _'Besides, I already showed him way too much…'_

"Not even a small hint?" the blue-eyed genin began to protest.

The Sharingan-wielder appeared thoughtful before relinquishing a scroll. To keep the jutsu's name a secret, he inconspicuously tore off the top of the parchment, along with a small genjutsu covering up said name throughout the entire scroll. He had then tossed it to his seemingly patient pupil, who fumbled a bit before clenching it in his hands. "I've written down some of the specifics to that technique. Good luck and I wish you well, because your assigned tutor should be showing up right about…now…"

"And who is this guy?"

"It's me!"

Blue eyes with slit pupils rounded on the new arrival who just spoke up. _'That voice sounds awfully familiar…and downright annoying…'_ To the blond's unpleasant surprise, he looked into a set of circular sunglasses, tinted frames hiding away the new person's eyes. He also took note of the navy-blue, standard-issue shinobi attire with a bandanna of the same hue covering up his hair. "Oh, no!" he yelled at the top of his lungs, disturbing a small flock of birds from their perches in the trees. "It's the closet pervert!" He pointed for emphasis.

The man in question hoisted up his frames with his forefinger, now gleaming in the evening sunlight with the tree-leaf-ingrained metal plating around his forehead, and harrumphed. "How rude…"

XXXXXXXXXX

The sun in the sky crept over the western horizon when Ebisu—Naruto's temporary sensei for the month ahead—took the boy over to the somewhat barren hot springs on the other side of town.

"Can't we get something to eat?" the jinchuuriki complained outwardly as they stopped at the entrance. "I'm starving!" Doshaburi, still affixed to Naruto's mop of blond hair, yipped in agreement, but chose not to speak.

"Not until I see your progress on water-walking," the older man neutrally answered, his tone brooking no argument as he held up the flap leading to the men's side. "Then, we'll break for dinner, while I give you a summation of your skills…"

'_Ugh…this is going to be very boring…'_ he inwardly grumbled, ears dropping at the same time. He then walked through. "Well, let's just get this over with, I guess…"

As soon as he walked into the onsen, Naruto felt the wafting heat tear away at his track suit, which made him shuck off his jacket to keep cool and tossed it onto a rock. Feeling the need to keep his clothes dry, he took off his sandals and placed them, side-by-side, near where his jacket lay. The demon-vessel had then folded up the cuffs of his pants to let them resemble a pair of Capri pants.

"All right, Dosha-chan," Naruto said as he looked up at his kit, who began to pant from the drastic rise in temperature, in tandem with the humidity, "you might want to wait to get to cooler waters to try this exercise. For now, just kick back." He knew that the hot water provided incentive to not fall in, unless he wanted to imitate a boiling lobster by the end of it.

"O-okay, Master…" he hesitantly spoke up, out of earshot of Konohamaru's retainer.

"Hm…" An idea started to sprout in Naruto's head. "Actually, run a few laps around the onsen to build up your stamina. I'll let you know what I'll come up next for you." _'Not like there's much of anyone around for him to cause a lot of mayhem…'_

Getting comfortable with steady breaths, Naruto channeled his energy through his feet and proceeded to walk across the near-boiling liquid. His feet dipped a millimeter or three in, but, for the most part, he remained on top of the surface. Testing a few steps in different directions, the boy's control never faltered. He took into consideration Hinata's advice by allowing the energy to naturally flow and accommodate to his expanded coils. That was fine and all, but he was still unable to produce any earth, ice or wood.

"I think I've seen enough, Naruto," Ebisu stated rather dispassionately, but on the inside, he was…relatively impressed. The boy did not lie to him; he knew how to walk on water, but he could tell that the kid was not happy about something. _'Maybe I can allow him to vent over some ramen…'_

The bewhiskered ninja's mouth evened into a thin line as he approached the edge where water met the gravel walkway. "And…?"

"You did remarkably well," the Tokubetsu Jounin noted with a hint of praise lining his voice, "but I feel that you seem…distracted about something."

'_Whoa…This guy is reading me_ too _well…'_ Naruto now felt a tad uncomfortable, feeling exposed like his feet. "It's nothing, really."

"Usually, that means it's a big issue, but you're too afraid to voice your insecurities." Some amusement crept in Ebisu's tone.

That caused the boy to flinch. "How…?"

The man displayed a smug look. "I'm one of the best there is around these parts, Naruto. Now, why don't we settle your issues over a little ramen? I know that's your favorite comfort food."

"Seriously, dude, you're a little creepy, but I'll take you up on your offer…if you're willing to pay…"

"Only one bowl, though…"

"Damn…" Naruto cursed under his breath.

XXXXXXXXXX

The substitute instructor and genin mulled over their bowls of warm broth and noodles in a contemplative silence. The wild-looking boy's canine, meanwhile, nibbled on scraps in the back alleyway, which occupied the calm of the twilight hour.

Naruto gently stirred the divine concoction with his chopsticks as he simmered on what he wanted to say to the closet pervert. What could he say?

"I think I reached a hurdle in my training," he opened up to his surrogate sensei after having collected his thoughts. "It's like…I can't get to the peak of my abilities, anymore."

"Oh?" Ebisu looked interested. "Pray tell of these abilities of which you speak."

"Well, I could if I would, but that'd be my neck on the chopping block." He shuddered. "The Old Man made me swear to not reveal my talents until he feels I'm ready." The blond's eyes narrowed before a thought crossed his mind. "Say, Ebisu-sensei…"

"Yes, Naruto?" he rhetorically asked, intrigued that the boy did not use that denigrating term toward him…

Not that he was a pervert, anyway. He mainly read Icha-Icha for the content and nothing more. That was his story, and he was sticking to it.

"Is there any way I can go beyond water walking in terms of chakra control exercises?"

"Oh, but of course!" Ebisu cheerily replied. "In fact, I think I may have a routine for you tomorrow. I'll have to examine it to ensure that this is tailored specifically to your…dilemma. Does noontime at the onsen sound okay to you?"

"Uh, sure, I guess…"

"Excellent! I'll see you tomorrow, then!" With that, his transient sensei bade him a farewell, but Naruto immediately noticed that something felt off about the atmosphere.

He looked over at the closet pervert's bowl, and it was empty, but what really grated on Naruto's skin was that he forced him to pick up the tab. His hair bristled in anger like a ravenous hound ready to tear into the one who slighted him.

"I'm _so_ going to stink-bomb his apartment…as soon as I find the address…"

XXXXXXXXXX

After reluctantly paying his dues (plus the cheapskate's, who dined and dashed), the blond ninja walked around the village at nine in the evening, trying his best to cool down before he blew his top. He looked up at the nighttime sky and drank in the twinkling stars scattered across the tapestry of the universe beyond anyone's understanding, taking in the quiet atmosphere that greatly contrasted with the diurnal hustle and bustle of the townsfolk peddling off their wares.

'_Now I see why Shikamaru likes to look up at the clouds…'_

"What's up there?" he heard his ocher-hued friend ask from his open rucksack, belly full.

"I don't know, Dosha-chan…but they sure are pretty to look at…" He grunted to ease the added weight that his little cloudburst carried.

The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end as he turned his head ninety degrees to the right. "You feel that, buddy?"

'**We're being followed…'** the Kyuubi chimed in with a dangerous edge. **'Stay on your guard, boy…'**

Just as he felt the presence shift in chakra usage, that flame of energy sputtered out, like it had been snuffed out by the very wind caressing his cheeks. "That's pretty odd," Naruto bluntly remarked, taking his hand off his kunai holster. "It's gone, now." Deciding to go dark, the demon vessel took to the dimly-lit alleyways to elude whatever—or whoever—was following him.

To his surprise, as he rounded a corner, he noticed a masked ninja down and out, feet splayed out in a V-shape. _'Probably drunk…'_ the bewhiskered genin reasoned. He carefully peered closer and gave a few whiffs with his nose. _'Nope…he's not sloshed. He might be knocked out…Wait…What's this?'_

Strung on the neck of the ninja was a blank sheet of paper, folded over once, hot-dog style. "Let's check it out." He summoned a Shadow Clone to guarantee there were not any kinds of traps around this fellow. "See if you can get that piece of paper for me," the original ordered the summoned bunshin.

With a solemn nod, the doppelganger knew its role. With a cautious grab, the blue-eyed copy opened up the sheet of paper. "Uh…boss, you might want to read this. It's addressed to you."

"You're just too lazy to read it," Naruto grumbled, palm held out in the beginnings of what could have been a 'come hither' gesture. "Hand it over."

The Kage Bunshin gave the vulpine ninja the document before dispelling itself. Naruto examined the note, and, by the end of it, his face had a sour look on it. "I guess I gotta see Saru-jijii in the morning to tell him this."

XXXXXXXXXX

The Hyouton kunoichi awoke the next morning, at around eight, with a heavy thought pressing down on her mind…

What was Kabuto doing around the hospital?

The son of the head medic was seen jumping out the window from the fifth story, which she assumed had been Sasuke-kun's room. While keeping hidden, Haku also witnessed Kakashi looming over the shattered glass, glaring daggers at the fleeing ninja, before turning around and examining the possible crime scene.

It just did not make much sense, at all.

She quietly moved to the bathroom to shower for the day of duties ahead, in order to prove her worth and trustworthiness to Konoha.

As she scrubbed off the grime accumulated due to the sweat and dirt from the day before, her mind had then wandered to the other occupant in the apartment. She let loose a wistful sigh.

What did she feel about him? She never had the chance to think for herself while under her late master, but…for him to give her autonomy made her feel…free, after all this time; no longer burdened by the shackles of servitude; no longer used as a tool for anyone's agendas, only to be discarded like refuse if it did not hold up to its standards.

Her savior had given her a new life, and for that, she was indebted to him for as long as she drew breath on this earth. If Naruto-kun ever needed comfort while pursuing his dreams, then she would be there for him, in any way possible.

Throwing on a comfortable kimono, she steadily walked into the dining room, where she noticed Naruto, who she wanted to greet, but some things were amiss…

One: His hands were hidden beneath the kitchen table.

Two: His back was facing her, obviously unaware of her approaching presence. The same could be said about the little cloudburst staring intently at his companion's lap.

Three: He started to grunt while jerking his hands in an up-and-down motion.

'_It almost looks like he's…he's…'_ Inadvertently, Haku took this the wrong way and squeaked, causing her hero to turn around, focus lost on opening a can of ramen—something he wanted to try to eat, but he had forgotten to buy a can opener…that, or he could not find one…

The resulting build-up of chakra gave way and blew off the top in a violent reaction, spewing the salty solution all over the table.

Mind blanking out from the shock factor, the older kunoichi's cheeks rapidly flushed, and she fainted on the spot. Even though she became hardened in battle, she had yet to be exposed to…that side of life…

"Eh?" Naruto, at first, was irritated with how this canned soup could not be opened, so he hazarded a tried-and-true method: the brilliant use of chakra. Now, he sat at the kitchen table, confused. He put down the blown-open can and checked up on her, to make sure she did not need to see a doctor.

'**Take her now!'** Ever the erotic one, the Kyuubi had his tongue hanging out.

'_Not now, you big horn-dog!'_

Propping her up against the wall, Naruto shook her awake. "Hey, Haku-chan, you okay? Get it together!" She fluttered her eyes open, delirium creeping across her vision.

"What…what were you doing?" she breathily asked.

"Huh?" He turned to the mess. "Oh, I couldn't find the can opener, so I tried to force it with some chakra."

Clearing the cobwebs from her mind, she gave him a strange look. "Chakra…doesn't solve all our problems…"

Slit pupils looked thoughtful. "If you're all right, I gotta go take care of some things." He turned to his fox familiar. "Dosha-chan, we gotta jet! Let's go, buddy!" With a yip, the walking ocher fuzz leapt into his backpack, and they were out the door to see the old man.

XXXXXXXXXX

The time was a quarter to nine, and the blond demon vessel soared from rooftop to rooftop to the Hokage Tower. It was strange, now, that he could not feel a presence lingering some distance away. _'Hm…Probably too much activity all around…'_ Sure enough, as he glanced down to see from a view, the streets were packed with clients and shopkeepers in the merchants' quarter, yelling out their best bargains to attract customers. It seemed pretty cutthroat, in the boy's opinion. _'Too bad I couldn't enjoy that kind of life growing up…'_ It became a part of his vow to guarantee that no one else would have a crappier childhood than he had gone through.

Thoughts regressing to the pressing matter at hand, the blue-eyed shinobi picked up the pace to check in with the desk clerk, who had told him to wait for about a half-hour as the Hokage had become engrossed in brokering a deal with a client who remained nameless. On what, he did not know, nor did the receptionist ever reveal anything pertaining to it.

It was now nine-thirty, and Naruto sat with his backpack on the floor (with fox kit peeking out once in a while), bored out of his mind, and eyes drooping back into the sandman's embrace. The door to the Hokage's Summoning Chamber silently opened and the nondescript mogul walked out in a seemingly peaceful manner. Just another face in the crowd, the genin reasoned as he started to get more attentive.

"You may come in now, Naruto-kun," the Sandaime tenderly intoned.

"It's about damn time, Saru-jijii," the younger of the two sniffed as he waltzed into the room and closed the door. He then noticed something out of place. "Hey, isn't that a shougi board you got on your desk?"

The wizened Fire Shadow nodded, looking thoughtful. "Yes."

"I see the pieces are already in play. Are you playing someone?" he carefully asked.

"Even though this is supposed to be a friendly game of competition," Sarutobi began as he examined the pieces a few more times, "it's turned into a game where the loser has to pay a year's subscription of…special literature as compensation."

Naruto grimaced, grossed out by the implications. "Ew…Don't tell me old guys like smut, too!"

"But, I digress," Hiruzen commented, clearing his throat at the same time. "To answer your question, I'm playing against Oonoki, a fellow old codger like yours truly who is the Sandaime Tsuchikage of Iwagakure."

"Aren't we still at odds with them?" Naruto pursed his lips.

"Well, yes and no. With a few pardons here and a non-aggression pact there, we've come to…tolerate one another after the Third Great Shinobi World War."

"I see, but I don't get it," the jinchuuriki bluntly stated.

"You'll learn the intricacies of politics when you get older, my boy." He then moved a few pieces back to where he thought they belonged.

"Hey, you know that cheaters never prosper, right, Old Man?" Naruto snidely asked.

'_Quite the contrary, Naruto…'_ "If memory serves me correctly, I'm afraid I was the one who was duped. The old coot thought he could get over on me…" Hiruzen then grumbled incoherently and tapped on his smoking pipe. "I'll put square wheels on his wagon by the time this is over." He wanted that Icha-Icha, damn it!

"Looks like it is…I think that's checkmate," the blond kid gave his opinion as he peered over as a kibitzer. He did not really know how to play shougi, but he had a general idea after spying on some old folks playing it in the local parks on certain afternoons during the autumn season. Most of his classmates would probably think it hilarious or completely odd for some bumbling goof-ball to learn how to play such a complex game of strategy and intellect.

Hey, being the village pariah and street urchin with nowhere to go had to have found time in doing something, and what else would be better than spying on people, if he could not engage with the crowds? That could have contributed, as an aftereffect, to the boy's stealth abilities and guile; if he wanted to be seen, then he would make it known by standing out and creating pandemonium for the ninja on guard duty, but in the times where he wanted to disappear, he did just that, or blended in to pilfer some unsuspecting sap's wallet or money pouch for a few ryou to get something to eat.

Anyhow, the Sandaime Hokage glanced one more time at the board, stunned at the revelation, and acquiesced with a winning smile. _'That Icha-Icha set is mine!'_ "Did I ever tell that I love you, Naruto?"

Naruto now felt out of place to dampen the bright atmosphere…and the oncoming hug of doom. "I'm…sorry to break this to you, but this is kind of important." The young genin scanned around. "Do you mind putting up a silencing barrier?"

"One second, my boy," the veteran kindly said, like a grandfather to his grandson. With a weird call, a carrier pigeon entered the opened window, feathers scattering around the edge of the desk. Hiruzen had taken the board, pieces in the proper positions, and sealed it into a storage scroll. "Do you mind…turning around, Naruto-kun? You don't want to see me and my antics."

"Meh…Sure, I guess, but no funny stuff, all right?" He did as he was told, and after hearing the sounds of a shutter and what might have been a photo ejected from a camera, Hiruzen told him to face him again. The boy saw him scribble something pretty quickly on the back of a photo, image-down, before sealing it with the shougi board. "I didn't take you for a prankster, Saru-jijii." Naruto snickered.

"You'll pick up things as you move through life, my boy."

"What about the silencing barrier?"

"Oh, right…" With clasped hands, the Hokage murmured a few unintelligible incantations before the room flashed white for a fraction of a second. "This is a modified version of the Silent Barrier Technique, where I made it stronger and more durable." The Hokage now presented himself in full-on business mode. "You came to me with urgent news, yes?"

'_Whoa…If I didn't think it, I would have thought Saru-jijii had a split personality…'_ Smoothing out his surprise, Naruto procured the letter he found off that incapacitated Root agent's body. "Last night, around twelve or so hours ago, I felt like I was being followed, but apparently, someone got to the guy before he got to me. He got knocked out and had a good lump on his head for good measure…"

"That part…is irrelevant," Hiruzen calmly stated, hands bridged under his chin like a steeple. "What's with the paper, son?"

"Ah, right…" He unfolded the paper that came out of his right pocket. "All it says is this: _The shadow is reaching beyond its limits, and that the light must make it know its place._ What's that mean, even though it's addressed to me?"

"It is coded talk that was meant for me," Hiruzen clarified as he took off the conical Hokage hat with a weary sigh. _'Is Sarutobi Hiruzen going to have to put some people in line with his golden hand?'_ He rubbed his chin, feeling the coarse, grainy hairs that lined his aged jawline. "Anything else, my boy?"

"No, I think that's it," the bewhiskered blond answered as best as he could, uncertainty lining his voice in the process. "Well, maybe one other thing. You see, I was too busy training to come to you about it, but I think I should bring it up, while I'm still here."

"Go ahead."

"I was about to be attacked in broad daylight in one of the abandoned districts on my way home, before the start of the Chuunin Exams, before I gave the masked ninja the slip and…kind of turned him into smoked bacon…"

"Did he have any defining characteristics?"

Naruto scratched his head. He surely could use a hair-washing. "No. He just had a blank mask with eye-holes, I think."

He saw the gears turning in the older man's head, but on what, he could not tell. "Go ahead and run along now, Naruto. I need some time for deliberation. I also know that you are busy preparing for the final trials, no doubt, but remember what I said to your team and the witnesses involved." That was the informal dismissal the boy wanted to hear before he dashed off to parts unknown.

The wrinkled skin on Hiruzen's face seemed to have grown more weathered after this recent bit of news as he lifted the fuuinjutsu temporarily surrounding the summoning chamber. It seemed that Danzou had been tailing his surrogate grandson far too closely as of late—almost as if he wanted to make a power play to get him enlisted to fight through the trenches and expose Naruto to the true evils of the ninja world. He would not have any of that, as long as he still remained alive and healthy.

His face, once peaceful, now contorted to that of a monster as his features soured. If anyone had seen him now, it would have been more so comical than frightening. He reached into the far corners of his desk to grab an embroidered glove, polished in pristine gold and donned it again on his good hand.

"It's time to uproot that bitch…"

Sarutobi Hiruzen of the Golden Hand emerged from the depths once more…

XXXXXXXXXX

Elsewhere, a swift chill scaled up and down said warmonger's spine. "There must be something in the air," Danzou emotionlessly stated, visible eye closing. However, in the back of his mind, a hint of dread began to sprout and fester like a weed. It felt like he just woke up a sleeping giant…and it was not happy in the least.

XXXXXXXXXX

Still full of energy after another hearty meal, Naruto and his little fox found themselves at the hot springs near the midday hour, where a punctual Ebisu met up with them.

The closet pervert was about to speak when another individual arrived on the scene, practically flying in from out of nowhere from an evanescent zip. The young man looked pretty ordinary, barring the fact of a metal faceplate sculpting around his sideburns and forehead. His tuft of brown hair, in Naruto's opinion, resembled a dead shrub grown from a flowerpot. By fortune, the man was an affiliate of Konoha, as denoted by the curved leaf symbol engraved on the center of that metal contraption.

"Can I help you, sir?" Ebisu politely asked.

"Yes," the man casually replied. "I'm here, by edict of Hokage-sama, to take Naruto with me to train. You, Ebisu, are to relinquish any and all details in regard to training the boy to me, effective immediately." As proof, the dark-eyed newcomer presented the Tokubetsu Jounin with the piece of parchment.

The sunglasses-wearing ninja skimmed over the contents. It was pretty clear-cut; he would have no hand in grooming a potential Hokage candidate for the future. What more could he say or have done? He did not know, but to decline this order would risk him losing his position and rank. He did not want to get demoted. "Very well," he breathed out, trying—but failing—to keep out his deflated tone.

As a silent spectator, Naruto looked from one shinobi to the other, who was now leaving without a single word. He then turned to the dark-eyed one still here. "Who the hell are you? And did Saru-jijii really send you over here?"

"…Maybe this will jog your memory, Naruto-kun…" Right before the blond's stunned eyes, the man clasped together his hands to form the Serpent hand seal, sprouting a wooden block from the ground before sitting on it. "I saw what you did in the Forest of Death, and while I do think it was foolish of you to use your special skills in front of a _collector_ of jutsu and bloodlines…I think I can help you overcome your little roadblock to get them back."

"You…you're…" Naruto's mind shut down.

"Yes, I was that tiger-masked ANBU scout who tried to detain Orochimaru, before he slithered right out of our grasp," the man bitterly said. "Anyway, I don't like to use my given name much, but…you may refer to me for the next two weeks as Yamato…"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N:** Well, here's another installment for you patient folks. On my behalf, I would like to humbly apologize for putting off this one for far too long. For a while, that drive to write seemed to dissipate, but, from out of the blue, it feels like I've gained a second wind. I also now realize (and reflect) on how fun it was when I first started writing this piece in the first place. Consider this a back to basics course for me, but with a more refined writing style.

If you can catch the Easter egg in this chapter, then you get some Internet points for the reference. Okay, maybe not, but I'll be sure to give you your fifteen minutes of fame with recognition in the next chapter's AN. Happy, now? :P

In terms of jutsu naming, I decided to alter Sakura's **Inner Will** to reflect as such. Henceforth, it shall be dubbed as the **Uchi naru Ishi (****内なる意志****)**. Furthermore, for those who felt that it was cheap for Naruto to possess two bloodline limits, here's a big egg on your face. I'm now justified through the recent (but questionable) canon, since Terumi Mei, the Godaime Mizukage, has two kekkei genkai (Futton and Youton – Boil and Lava Releases, respectively) and three elemental chakra overlays (water, earth, and fire). So, pretty much, any point of contention about Naruto's power level in Mokuton and Hyouton, from now on, is moot. Got that?

From the suggestions of my pre-readers, I've supplied for you a broad-strokes recap to refresh your memory at the top. I felt that I owed it to you all for sticking with me in the hopes that I would update.

Anyway, I would like to give my nods of acknowledgement to **Arashi the Solar Phoenix**, **weixuan18**, **EliadS** and **Paladeus** for urging me on in the absence of the general clique I run with, in tandem with their vital input. Words can't even begin to describe how well they have helped me. **Be sure to look for them over FFN for their stories and be sure to leave a kind word or two for them, for my sake.**

Furthermore, I'd also like to give a nod to **pudgypudge** and **gamedragon86** for their input a long time ago with regard to a particular scenario we had cooking up. I finally got around to inserting the damn thing…

At any rate, I also encourage three things from you, while you are still with me.

**First** of all, for those who have read this chapter, I ask that you at least leave me a review (for those anonymous readers, you're tough out of luck, since I still have them disabled). I know it's asking a lot out of some of you, but I appreciate feedback, and it would help me write faster to keep you all entertained while I try to juggle between writing for the real world and for fan fiction, occupational job hustling notwithstanding.

**Second** item of business: while you are in the general vicinity, I would also like to invite you to the other stories I have up and currently running, even though they are sparse compared to TFD. They are _Limit Breaker: Fūjin no Ōdachi_ and _Wild Fire_, if you have not already done so. Get the word out for your boy, all right?

**Third**ly, I would like for you to try to keep in touch with me through my forum, **Orion's Utility Belt** (if you do not have either MSN or Yahoo! Instant Messenger—and for those that do: be sure to tag a message denoting that you're a follower of my stories, or else I won't accept you) and my challenges forum, **The Heavens' Sniper**. I know that you can't access it from my profile, but fear not. I have it as a hyperlink near the bottom of my page right before my stories. Drop by to show an author that you care about him by discussing about flaws and inconsistencies with his works, okay? I'll also try to keep an updated progression of how far along is the next chapter for each story, and if you feel that I'm slacking off, notify me through the forums or send me a PM to pester me to get back on track. Furthermore, if you have any story ideas that you would like to see written or come to fruition, then feel free to drop a few notes in the second forum. _**This is important: be sure to SUBSCRIBE to the forum when you do get there. Trust me: it'll help if you get e-mails sent to you when it pertains to threads you want to follow.**_

Anyhow, now that I have gotten that out of the way, I'll be easy on your eyes and end it on just that. Take care, feel free to show me some love with a review, and I'll see you the next time I update. By the way, there's an **omake** coming right after the Romaji/Jutsu Guide, so, stay tuned!

_The combatants scheduled to compete in the Chuunin Selection Exams' final rounds have started their rigorous training routines for the month ahead. There is no slacking off now, chuunin-to-be! The looming storm cloud over the horizon brings trouble and disaster in its wake. What will happen when this tempest passes through?_

_Jikai (Next time…), on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Training Daze (Part II)_

**Romaji/Jutsu Guide**

**Hachimon (Eight Gates)**: S-rank kinjutsu (forbidden technique); eight chakra gates are eight specific points on a person's chakra circulatory system that limit the overall flow of chakra within a person's body, and the basis for the idea of the chakra gates comes from the body's limits on the functions within it, which makes the body much weaker, but it keeps the body from expiring too soon; by opening these gates, the user can surpass their own physical limits at the cost of extreme damage to their own bodies (Narutopedia)

**Makibishi**: spiked caltrops used to deter pursuers off a ninja's trail by throwing these barbed spikes behind him or her

**Youjutsu Magen: Tsuta Wana no Jutsu (Dark Art Demonic Illusion: Ivy Snare Technique)**: D-rank offensive/supplementary genjutsu; allows user to "ensnare" her target with an illusionary ivy plant that feels almost lifelike (created)

**Mokuton**: literally, "Wood Release"; in English TV, "Wood Style"

**Juujin Bunshin (Beast Human Clone)**: D-rank supplementary taijutsu; modified version/mix of a **Henge no Jutsu (Transformation Technique)** and a clone technique, which is unique to the Inuzuka clan, that allows a canine-user to transform his/her animal companion into a perfect copy of the ninja in question; when combined with the **Shikyaku no Jutsu (Four Legs Technique)**, the user and the animal become virtually impossible to tell apart, since both act equally animalistic. Like any transformation, the technique can be broken by identifying and attacking the animal, thus dispelling the transformation (Narutopedia)

**Tsuuga (Passing Fang)**: D-rank short- to mid-range taijutsu attack; the user spins at a ferocious speed and delivers many powerful beast-like attacks when contact is made with the target (Narutopedia)

**Hyouton**: literally, "Ice Release"; in English TV, "Ice Style"

**Uzumaki Naruto Reppuu Rendan (Uzumaki Naruto Violent Wind Combo)**: High B-rank offensive close-range taijutsu/ninjutsu blend; with the skillful use of Shadow Clones, Naruto juggles his opponent into the air with them, while he, himself, waits a bit in the air after piggybacking off a doppelganger, or sticks to walls, depending on the conditions of battle; with the use of wind-natured chakra, Naruto imbues his limbs with the augmented power to assault his foe with two kicks in the chest and a rotating axe kick to the head, which sends the foe crashing into the ground or floor, depending on the venue of battle; factoring in the height at which an enemy falls after being tossed into the air by Naruto or his clones, the end result could be fatal; ranking bumped up due to the addition of elemental ninjutsu factored in (semi-created)

**Juuken (Gentle Fist)**: a form of taijutsu unique to the Hyuuga clan that inflicts internal damage through damaging the chakra points—tenketsu (see below)—along the chakra circulatory system, which are closely intertwined with the body's organs, and, with a single (or grazing) touch, the practitioner can surgically inject a portion of his/her chakra to disrupt the flow; due to the fact that tenketsu cannot be seen with the naked eye, the **Byakugan (White Eye)** is best equipped to utilize this hand-to-hand combat to the fullest (Narutopedia)

**Suiton: Shokushu Fuka (Water Release: Tentacle Appendages)**: C-rank close- to mid-range ninjutsu/taijutsu variant; user encompasses his or her arms with water to lash out at the target; in Hinata's case, she can channel her Gentle Fist through the water as a medium to incapacitate or kill her target (created)

**Tenketsu**: literally, "pressure points"; nodes from which chakra is released; the human body is theorized to have 361 in total

**Shugohakke: Kyokuryuu no Mai (Eight Trigrams Protection: Dance of the Meandering Stream)**: unknown rank close- to mid-range taijutsu augmented with elemental ninjutsu; blended taijutsu of Tai Chi and Ba Gua-style Juuken, combined with the use of water; Hinata's variant consists of walking around a target in an imaginary, 'fixed' circle to intercept blows from outside and inside the circle with blocks or creating small walls of water to cushion the blows (created)

**Karasu**: "Crow"; one of Kankurou's puppets, it resembles a three-eyed, four-armed humanoid with jagged teeth and spiky brown hairstyle protruding from the top of its head and framing the sides

**Soushouryuu (Twin Rising Dragons)**: unknown rank mid-range offensive ninjutsu; a technique unique to Tenten, she places two small scrolls in an upright position on the floor, and when activated, the two scrolls release smoke while also flying and spinning into the air in the shape of two dragons made of smoke. Tenten then jumps between the two scrolls, and starts to rapidly summon and throw all sorts of weapons as a powerful barrage. If the initial bombardment were to fail, she can control the discarded weapons with wires attached to her fingertips for a surprise attack (Narutopedia)

**Rasengan (Spiraling Sphere)**: A-rank offensive, close-range _incomplete_ ninjutsu; user creates a violent, chakra-based sphere in the palm of his or her hands that drills and bores through the target; gains power when pushed through the target, most likely causing great internal damage (Narutopedia)

_**Special Omake**__: Sarutobi Hiruzen of the Golden Hand_

Left alone to his own devices, the Sandaime Hokage reflected on a rather nostalgic mission in the past, when he was a young whippersnapper in a sea of sharks. The ornate glove on his hand made him chuckle alone in his office, once he dismissed Naruto and drew up the missive to summon Tenzou.

After a fragile peace among the flourishing nations before the Second Great Shinobi World War, Senju Tobirama, then-Nidaime Hokage, received word from a client about the disappearance of his paramour, in addition to more women around the border towns, which then led to a human trafficking ring on the outskirts of the Fire Country. Feeling that it was his job to uphold an exemplary reputation to Hi no Kuni, Tobirama ordered Hiruzen to investigate in deep-cover territory…

'_Fifty-three years ago…'_

The time most certainly flew by like the accelerating wind on this hot summer day in July.

At any rate, he continued his trip down Memory Lane.

There was a caveat before the then-young man accepted: he would have to go undercover—as a pimp—and keep tabs on everything from the inside, all the while infiltrating the ring, finding the client of the lover, and extract her.

If Jiraiya had been in his place at that point in time, then he would have died a happy man with that as his dream job.

Nevertheless, the man's village offered a generous stipend if the ninja in question could rescue as many women he possibly could or try to sabotage the illegal activities, as a sign of appreciation to the cause.

Needless to say, Hiruzen hopped on the opportunity of a lifetime for any hot-blooded male.

He had gotten…a good deal of experience with the women who were placed under his command as he adjusted to the seedy way of life that was of ill repute. It was a culture shock, through and through.

'_Just what in Amaterasu's name did I get myself into?'_ he brought to mind. In retrospect, maybe he did assume his role as a high-end pimp…a little too well.

Whenever they got out of line, he never smacked them; rather, he assumed a sour-looking face, with his right hand stiffly held up, glowing like power incarnate, which made them cower in fear.

He could still recite the mantra he said to them as he made that gesture.

"With your power, O Great Goddess Amaterasu, shall I set these whores in line, and O Great Goddess Amaterasu, empower Thy might unto this hand, so these whores shall know their place. Amen…" he mumbled in garbled overtones before laughing under his husky breath.

After his escapades and misadventures, he managed to pull through for Konoha with a C-rank mission completed under his belt. The ring had its plug pulled from within, dissolved like sugar in a cup of tea, all thanks to him. To his surprise, he had met his future wife, Biwako, amid the ordeal, who had been freshly caught, bound and gagged, almost like a hog roast being prepped for barbecue.

He had also gained an alias from it all from the secret circles that only a scant few know now—Kinnote, the "Golden Hand." To further add to the joke, those who found out had gone through hoops to have a set of gloves commissioned for his clandestine namesake. He merely took it all in stride with good humor.

Then again, the rumor mill churned all over after that, which made him lightly shake his head in amusement. He was astounded by the amount of myths and exaggerated half-truths that came about when he lost one glove through the years.

One rumor had it that he lost a glove while beating someone's ass with the other hand tied behind his back. _'Eh…partially true…'_ His vast memory blocked out what really happened then, though.

Another rumor claimed that he had weighted knuckles lining the gauntlet, which was a flat-out myth. _'Back then, I could hit that hard…'_ He just gave the impression that someone on the receiving end of his back-hand felt the consistency of a brick wall dislocating his jaw.

Mulling over it, he took off the decorated hand-covering and examined it. The wizened Hokage let a smirk grace his features. _'I wonder how Oonoki took to what I sent him…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

At around four in the afternoon, a messenger had barged into a neatly organized office, situated in the face of a mountain. "Tsuchikage-sama, there's a scroll from the Hokage, and it's marked urgent!" he shouted, out of breath.

An elderly, short man with a vastly receding hairline and a bulbous nose glanced up from the documents lining his desk. "Hand it over," he ordered with his raspy voice, palm jutted outward to accept the parchment.

"Right!" the male messenger snapped before presenting it to his Earth Shadow and departed just as hastily.

'_Hm…Maybe I ought to be less strict on my workers…'_ Oonoki reflected, now holding the wooden scroll with the Hokage's homeland symbol. Glancing around to take in the silence, he unraveled and popped open the contents.

"Huh?" The shougi board was back to normal, before he even tinkered with it, but what pissed him off was that Hiruzen saw through it and adjusted it…with his own move added to win the game. His king got cornered. "Checkmate…"

Feeling the bitter sting of defeat, he saw a face-down photo with Hiruzen's scrawl on it. He picked it up and read it out loud to himself. "Pay up, or face the wrath…" His rage cooled as he turned over the photo to see the image.

Not wondering how on earth did Hiruzen-dono take the snapshot without using his hands, Oonoki saw the 'gimme' gesture of his left hand—and the troll-like face in a comical scowl, but what made it worse…was what was tightly grasped in the old coot's other digits…

That caused the liver-spotted Earth Shadow to frown and grumble in his loss. _'Damn…I'm about to get pimp-slapped by the Golden Hand if I don't pay up…'_ "Kurotsuchi, I got a job for you!"

His granddaughter, who looked more or less like a carbon copy of Konoha's lady snake-charmer but with a shorter hairstyle, pupil-less eyes and a more boyish-looking face, waltzed into the room. "You called, Gramps?"

His thin, long mustache twitched. He would find yet another way to embarrass his family…by sharing the pains of defeat with him. "There's something that you need to do for me…"


	18. Training Daze: Part II

**_Chapter Eighteen_**_: Training Daze (Part II)_

In a secret satellite base stationed due north of Konoha, yellowish-gold eyes shifted around in the darkness, somewhat unfocused due to a previous affliction cast unto them.

Orochimaru rubbed at his face to shake off the distorted vision as he thought about the incident back in the Forest of Death.

He could have easily killed those pesky genin if he had the opportunity, but in order to remain anonymous for as long as possible, unleashing a technique that had the potential to level a good portion of the forest would have easily had his handiwork written all over it and gave him away, instantly. He detested holding back, but his curious nature urged him to bear witness to those unique jutsu. It excited him to the point of ecstasy to see something…so exotic and fascinating to observe and examine with a fine-toothed comb.

The Sharingan popped up first in his inner musings while he wistfully gazed at the burning candles in the low-lit chamber. It was such a pristine gift from the gods!

_'If only Danzou had not hogged them all…'_ he bitterly reflected, murderous intent steadily increasing as his presence filled the empty room.

Somehow, that emotionless drone managed to con him out of the sacred doujutsu. Where was his fair share?

He lightly shook his head. There was no need—nor was it the right place—to act like a bratty child who did not get his way. The Hebi-sennin was far above that; the power vested in him by the summoned snakes at his disposal proved that he was a man of thought and action. He wanted to watch the world burn while he, sitting atop his throne, witnessed the carnage from below and record the techniques thrown from all sides until the end of days.

The Legendary Ninja found it rather interesting that his right hand, Kabuto, aborted the mission to kill dear Sasuke-kun to foil his own. Was the young ninja toying with him while hanging a sword of Damocles above his seat of power, waiting for it to drop on him so he could usurp all that he has built?

_'The boy is a lifetime too early to surprise me…kukuku…'_

He let the boy have his fun on his long leash, but when it came to his top-priority objectives, they were no laughing matter…

His mind's eye turned its clouded gaze to a subject of crystal-clear ire and simultaneous wonder…Uzumaki Naruto…

The boy was a chip off the old block that was his irksome father, no doubt. To deny the obvious facial features and strikingly familiar blond hair and blue eyes would mean deluding oneself into thinking that the fox forced the boy to resemble close to the village's dead hero, which was flat-out preposterous…

That was in the boy's genetic code. Nothing more and nothing less…

No wonder he decided to depart from that stagnant village of idealistic viewpoints and blind hypocrisy…

_'Praise the martyr, but use his son as the scapegoat…What an ironic twist. The villagers can't look past their prejudices and stupidity to see the truth…'_ Slowly, and steadily, the timbre of his hollow chuckles crept through the chamber like a frigid wind carrying an ominous foreboding. _'If I had a conscience, I'd pity the fools…kukuku…'_

Nevertheless, the boy was proving to be more of a thorn in his side, but, in that same breath, it would mean that he would prove to be a pain in the derriere to the ninja who wanted to hunt him for the beast of burden sealed in his gut. Having the key to the Senju bloodline painted a broader target on the boy's back, and Orochimaru had a quiver of arrows and a hunter's bow, just for the occasion…

He frowned as he glanced down at the nubby stump that was his right forearm.

_'Yes…Very troubling, indeed…'_

With a little rest and relaxation, he would recuperate when things fell into place. On that, there was no doubt.

The wraithlike flame burning the wick felt out of focus when the master snake-charmer gazed into it, forcing him to rub his eyes, yet again.

Haruno Sakura, once thought to have been a non-factor in his grand scheme, managed to intrigue him very much. A fellow genjutsu user started to blossom from the Hidden Leaf Village…

No pun intended.

He had gotten data from his ashy-haired assistant that the pink-haired girl's style of genjutsu appeared very lifelike and with realistic effects.

_'Her skills have taken a turn to my liking.'_ He licked his lips in growing excitement. To strike him subtly from the blind side caused her to become a blip on his radar. These youjutsu, as they had theorized, proved to be worth their weight in pursuing further endeavors. _'Another branch of genjutsu to investigate at a later time, I suppose…'_

From the selection of able bodies, the blond nuisance was out of the question, even though usurping his body might have allowed him to suppress bijuu, which would easily reconfigure that bull's-eye to his direction. That did not factor in the Kyuubi no Youko and his intolerant behavior toward him. _'And to think that fellow demons look out after one another…'_

What did that make him, then, if not a demon in a human's body long since withered away and transformed into a higher state of perfection? An immortal among men that transcended the tests of time through his forbidden techniques?

It mattered not, in his opinion. He could try to work over the rosette-haired kunoichi, but he already snatched the body of a woman prior to entering the Forest of Death. It was time to swap out for another male body.

Hey, the Snake Wizard had his choice to cycle genders in his body-snatching quest for the perfect one…almost like trying to find the proper attire that suited any and all of his wants, desires, and wishes. Time was no object for him; lesser men could ill afford it.

That left the only viable choice; his original choice with what he had in mind…

However, he mulled it over and thought that putting his eggs in one basket would cost him in the long run if he invested too much time in driving the last Uchiha away from Konoha and into his welcoming embrace with the promise of power. That left a few contingencies in place, if his initial plan failed and backfired. That was, if Sasuke-kun managed to overcome the willpower of the Ten no Juin…

Orochimaru had to pause and think on that. He gave the three, in his hasty getaway, a lesser grade of the Cursed Seal of Heaven from his slithery brethren instead of administering the complete formula from his own fangs. He would have to rectify that, post-haste.

Either way, he would let those three children have their inflated egos…for now…

When their guard was down, the cornered serpent would coil back and strike with a nasty vengeance…

A few raps on his door alerted Orochimaru of his…guest…

"Please, come in," the Ninja of Legend intoned with a slithery hiss.

XXXXXXXXXX

Naruto kept a critical gaze on his new instructor, even though he unknowingly met the man some time ago. He found it odd that he got tossed from a Tokujou to an ANBU Jounin. He considered that the upgrade was greatly appreciated from the old man.

As he got whisked away by this Yamato guy to one of the open training fields, instead of the hot springs—thank the gods!—the wood-producing ninja wondered why the fox kit tagged along, so he asked the boy.

"Nobody else's home right now," the blond answered in Doshaburi's defense. "Besides," his eyes upturned into U-shapes, "I wouldn't want to have Dosha-chan chew on all the furniture."

_'That's Kakashi-senpai's student, all right…'_

"…Fair enough…" the now-unmasked ANBU operative neutrally intoned before looking around. "This will do for now." Tenzou took out the notes that Ebisu had written down for Naruto's lesson plans. He frowned and tore them to shreds.

The blond boy could only look on in open shock. "Wh-what are you doing?" he asked with a loud voice.

The Mokuton-infused ninja heaved a long sigh, tossing the paper confetti in the wind. "His training routine for you…was subpar and inadequate for us to use," he dully replied. "All he had for you was leaf-floating while treading water. That will not get you the desired results." A moment of clarity passed through his mind. "In fact, I believe I have something better…" He turned to the awaiting blond. "You…might want to stand back…"

When he saw Yamato-sensei clasping his hands into the Seal of the Tiger, Naruto jumped back a significant distance before the earth started to roil from underneath him. Suddenly, a rocky cliff face sprouted up, with the young man riding atop the precipice. That was soon followed up by a torrent of gushing water that poured over the newly-made rampart of earth with three hand seals: Boar, Dog, and Ram.

"Whoa…" Naruto's mouth hung loose and agape, breathless and speechless. He _really_ wanted to learn those jutsu.

"Any wider, and flies might fly right in, Naruto-kun," the short-haired brunet flippantly commented.

The ANBU jounin looked like a speck from Naruto's perspective. "What were those jutsu, Yamato-sensei? I really want to learn them!"

"In due time, Naruto-kun," he casually responded, "but, in the meantime, we'll work your way up from here…" The irony was lost on the blue-eyed shinobi as he fixedly gawked at the roaring cascade. Clearing his throat to get the boy's attention, Yamato continued. "First, I'm going to have you muscle around your chakra for this exercise."

Naruto then gave his temporary mentor a questioning look. "Muscle around…my chakra?"

The dark-eyed jounin nodded. "Yes. Just like the muscle fibers in your body, you have to flex your chakra once every so often, to keep your body balanced and in tune with itself. Your problem is that you are not in perfect harmony, and this training may set you in the right direction." His face thinned out into a serious demeanor. "Bear in mind, though, that this won't happen over a few hours…or in one night."

_'I'm curious, now…'_ "And what will you have me do?"

Yamato smiled, pointing down. "See the little lake below?"

Naruto frowned before giving the other ninja an incredulous stare. He could not be serious. "I know how to walk on water, damn it!" His patience started to wear thin.

Before the blond knew it, the elite ninja soared over the waterfall and gracefully landed with a little thud, right in front of him.

"Before we start, however, I'd like you to know that I'm nothing like Kakashi-senpai…" His visage darkened, but the scary face appeared more humorous than frightening. "I'm not above using fear to keep you in line, so, don't test me…"

Sweat started to pour off Naruto's face by the cupfuls as he cowered in fright. _'That…that face…it's scary…'_

**"My, this amuses me so…"** the Kyuubi murmured before a side-splitting laughter pounded in the blue-eyed genin's mind.

The wood-conjuring ninja's face brightened up to its normal state, once more. "Now that I have your undivided attention, allow me to finish what I wanted to say."

_'Note to self: don't piss off Yamato-sensei…'_ he errantly mused.

The bellowing guffaw from his caged tenant did little to settle his nerves. **"You tickle my funny bone, Naruto…hinhinhin…"**

"As I was saying," Yamato began, "to reconfigure your energy, to match the conditioning of your body, you are going to walk on water…using only your hands…"

"…" Naruto owlishly blinked. "…Are you serious?"

"Yes…" Yamato's face comically darkened around his cheeks, chin and eyes. "…unless you have a problem with that…"

Chills ran up and down Naruto's spine like a swarm of insects. "N-No, not a problem at all!" he squeaked.

"That's what I like to hear." The genetically-altered shinobi's mood lightened up. "Now, this serves a fundamental purpose: it stabilizes your body while I have you do something with your feet." He then rubbed at his cheeks. "Speaking of that, take off your shoes. You won't need them."

Naruto knew it was best to not protest and comply. He did just that and left them a few meters from the training site, neatly arranged, along with his black jacket. "So, what'll you have me do with my feet, Yamato-sensei?"

Said shinobi rubbed under the material lining his chin in thought. "Wait for just one moment." Clasping his hands together into the Seal of the Serpent, which consisted of all four fingers interlocking with thumbs parallel to one another, Yamato conjured a tree with abundant foliage right next to him, which also doubled as a shade during his leisure time…er, his surveillance spot while the boy trained. "Take about four leaves from this tree."

_'I still question as to why he doesn't walk a few meters to the forest and pick out a few leaves for me…'_ he mentally grumbled as he walked to do some leaf-picking.

**"This jounin is probably as lazy as the one-eyed copycat, boy,"** the fox offhandedly remarked, examining his nails in disinterest.

_'Either way, he still does it with so much ease. I wonder how he managed to cope with Mokuton after it had been integrated in his system as a kid…'_ Did he harbor a grudge against Orochimaru for what he had done to him? He would have to ask him later.

The older man's voice brought him out of his wandering thoughts. "You are going to free-float those leaves with the soles of your feet."

"Huh?" He did not fully get it. He was a bit slow on the uptake. "How am I going to do that?" This routine was new to him—alien, even, in terms of approach.

"Well," Yamato began to explain, "like juggling, you are going to cycle and rotate the leaves in a smooth rhythm."

"May I ask why will that help me in the long run, Sensei?"

"By keeping rooted with your hands," Yamato held out his open palms for emphasis, "this allows your feet to synchronize with the changes within you. In other words, with the bottom half of your body upside-down, you can find equilibrium and balance with your chakra. Does that make sense, Naruto-kun?"

The boy stood in place, nonplussed, despite the bump in intelligence granted to him by the odd fox in his gut. "No, not really…"

The personal trainer scratched the side of his face with his right forefinger. "Well, you're expelling your chakra energy from both directions. In a way, think of a sack of grain. What happens when you turn it upside-down?"

"Gravity takes over as the grain sifts to the other end," Naruto answered, pointing out the obvious, before the idea locked into place. "Oh! So, you mean to tell me that I'm going to balance my chakra with respect to gravity?"

"It's a stretch in theory," the brunet remarked, "but you're sort of correct."

"Sort of?" Naruto looked down in the mouth. "You mean…I'm wrong?"

Yamato waved his hands in a defensive gesture. "Oh, no, not at all. It's just that…with your…status, this hasn't really been done before. We're just winging it." He had the nerve to appear sheepish.

The whisker-marks silently grumbled. _'A shot in the dark, then…'_ "Well, no time like the present, then…Let's do the damn thing!"

XXXXXXXXXX

One hour passed by, and Naruto growled in frustration. After countless tries, he only ended up soaked to the bone and heavily panting on dry land. _'This is so aggravating!'_

"How are you feeling, Naruto-kun?" Yamato asked while hovering over the boy.

"This…sucks…" the blond uttered through harsh breaths. "It's hard to do…" Sure enough, fine-tuning his chakra to match the physical conditioning of his body proved to be very, very difficult.

"Well, I told you that before we started," the Mokuton-wielding ANBU agent supplied rather helplessly, arms crossed over his chest, "but did you listen to me, at all? No…"

He really wanted that Yamato guy to put a cork in it. He got the point…

He sucked…really bad.

"Okay…So, what am I doing wrong, Yamato-sensei?" Naruto all but grated out, still splayed out on the ground.

"Obviously, you're not focused enough," the brunet kindly deduced as he pursed his lips. "Just…go with the flow…"

_'Go with the flow…'_ The blond demon vessel chewed on that for a moment as he regained his breath and composure. He let a small grin burst onto his face. "I think I get it, now…"

He got up on his two feet again, feeling a bit dizzy, but was otherwise fine. The Kyuubi's jinchuuriki walked up to the pond to gaze at his reflection…and frowned a bit, his good mood deflating a slight amount.

_'Hey, Kyuubi-sensei…'_

**"I thought I told you to not call me that, brat,"** he snipped, fangs showing.

_'…When will I ever return to normal?'_

**"You just have to find harmony—"**

_'I'm not talking about that!'_ Naruto mentally shouted. _'I mean…my face. When will I go back to being human again?'_ He now saw a walking freak of nature with his pointed ears, his slit pupils, his fanged teeth and his shaggy, mussed-up hair. The boy examined his hands as if they were foreign to him; almost as if he really looked at them the first time. He wanted to do away with all that. _'Is there any way I can revert back to my normal features?'_ Beforehand, back at the Wave Country, he thought the changes were cool. Now, after his ordeal in the Forest of Death, his outlook turned a bit pessimistic. He felt that things were spiraling out of his control.

**"Hmm…Well, there is a way, but I don't feel that you are ready, just yet, for that,"** the carmine phantom cryptically remarked. He then cut off his warden before he got in a word, edgewise. **"Before you start yelling, know this: it is for your own good. Otherwise, you will most assuredly die if you were to go through with it right now, as you are—ill-equipped and not 'ripe,' so to speak."**

Naruto really did not like being told what to do, but he bit his tongue and growled. _'Fine…'_

**"Clear your mind, Naruto,"** the vulpine bijuu advised. **"Be at ease for this training exercise. You're thinking too hard. Just…relax…and follow the way. All that other stuff that's weighing down on your mind, you have to let go. Focus is your key issue."**

The blond ninja had to smile. _'Thanks…I guess…'_ He needed someone to snap him out of his funk. There was no need to wallow in what had already happened. Instead, he needed to pick up the pieces of his predicament and carry on, like always.

**"Don't mention it, brat,"** the Kyuubi haughtily remarked. **"I'd rather see you cheerful and bright, instead of dark and gloomy…like that Uchiha runt…"**

_'Heh…You sure know how to push my buttons, fox.'_ Calming his breathing, and grunting for good measure, Naruto got to work as he started to perform a handstand on dry land before testing out a few taps on the pond below the cataract.

**"I aim to please…"** He did his best with imitating a very mocking bow. The boy lost cool points in his book for screwing things up, and leaving it to him to fix the situation at the cost of disrupting the balance of his body. Granted, the Kyuubi surmised that he had a hand in prodding the boy to attack Orochimaru rather foolhardily, but he would make up for it…later.

Somehow, the little runt managed to grow on his chakra-based hide, but he _adamantly refused_ to admit that to him, at all. That was tantamount to swallowing his pride and telling the boy that he liked him.

**_'I swear I'm getting too soft…'_**

XXXXXXXXXX

Several hours later, Yamato kept silent while the young genin managed to rapidly adjust to the training exercise. He still fell in from time to time, but, on the whole, the boy's drive to stay afloat made an impression on him.

Naruto-kun still had a frustrating time with regard to juggling the leaves over the soles of his feet, though. He tried to float the leaves as he carried himself over the small aquatic body, but in almost every attempt, Naruto lost his handling and fell in, head first. He wanted to laugh at the blond's expense, but that would only discourage him from succeeding in the impromptu training method. The kid thrived on good compliments that stroked his ego.

_'Maybe he'll finish this by the end of the week…'_ He took a lazy glance at the position of the sun. _'Hm…Four-thirty, already?'_ He yawned a bit before righting himself up, under the shade of the tree he conjured. "I think we should call it a day, Naruto-kun. I see that your handling of this training routine is going rather well, all things considered."

The village's scourge merely spat out water for the umpteenth time and grumbled.

"How about a friendly, little wager, then?" the Mokuton-infused ninja asked in kind.

Naruto's pointed ears twitched, his head keeping afloat above the manmade lake. "I'm listening…"

"I'll buy you ramen for a week if you can master this exercise in less than seven days." A grin threatened to split the boy's face in half, burning determination invigorating him anew. _'That's one hell of a motivator, it seems. Is that all he ever thinks about?'_

Yamato let loose a large mouthful of air. If it got the boy over his personal obstacle, then he guessed it did not matter _what_ inspired him. On the other hand, a feeling of dread lined the inside of his pockets…

He was probably going to be dead broke when the boy followed through on the small bet.

XXXXXXXXXX

The son of Konoha's White Fang stared up at the waxing crescent moon in deep thought, rubbing his clothed chin in the process.

He stood atop the flat roof of Konoha Hospital for the last few hours, contemplating some of the roadblocks that managed to present themselves as a cool breeze wafted through the village to balance out the mild heat from this afternoon.

_'Yakushi Kabuto…Just what are you really after?'_

The son of the head medic of Konoha Hospital constantly found his way into the Copy Ninja's musings in a pervading manner. What was his reason to taunt him and almost slice open Sasuke's neck? Furthermore, how come that kid was strong enough to kill less than a dozen ANBU—that he personally assigned to guard his pupil's room—like mere cannon fodder; like chuunin?

_'There's something going on,'_ he reflected as his visible eye kept upward. _'I feel that there's another possible threat of attack. The question of the matter is…when and where will they strike, next? And are they already planning something within our walls?'_

"You seem distracted, Kakashi; more than the usual, in fact."

The gruff voice made the ashen-haired assassin turn away his focus on the zenith to the newcomer.

Standing with a knee propped up on a ventilation shaft was a tall man with a wild mane of spiky, white hair that extended past his shoulders as lengthy bangs, and down to his waist as a ponytail. His ornate garb reminded Kakashi of a thespian extracted from a kabuki-style play and made into a very strong and capable shinobi. The olive-green of his hakama and short-shirt kimono, along with the red of his cloak, clashed with the cerulean night, but his forehead protector, which had odd horns jutting out of it and had the kanji for 'oil' engraved in the dead center, gleamed in the available moonlight.

Kakashi's exposed orb widened in realization. How did he get here? "Jiraiya-sama, you've returned!"

"In the flesh, kid," the Toad Hermit commented, forming one of his special poses—knee bent in, hopping on one foot and one hand out, palm openly exposed. "The Village's Madness has returned to grace your presence, once more!"

The Copy Ninja's lone eye became lidded in boredom again. _'So over the top, as per his style…'_

"What brings you here to Konoha? I'm assuming that this isn't a coincidence." He folded his arms over his chest and rested his head against the shaft a meter away from the Legendary Ninja.

"The shadows are creeping about," Jiraiya mysteriously remarked in coded talk, goofiness instantly chucked aside, "and a storm is quickly approaching…"

"You feel it, too, don't you?"

The elder ninja nodded. "I've been keeping tabs on Orochimaru, but for the moment, he's keeping a low profile."

The Copy Ninja felt that there was more that the wild recluse needed to say. "There's…something else you want from me, sir?"

True to form, the white-haired 'Super Pervert' walked up and closed the distance between the two. "How's…Naruto doing, by the way?"

Kakashi took note of the forlorn look that came and went on the Toad Sage's face when that name got brought up. "Funny you should say that. He said to me that, whenever he meets this 'Jiraiya' person, that he'd show him a thing or two."

"Oh?" Then, the geta-wearing shinobi allowed a mirthful chuckle to escape his lips. "He probably doesn't like my works very much, right?"

"…You could say that…" Why did his charge show so much hate to perverts? One would think that he had a feminine side…or maybe he just defended women's rights in the Elemental Nations. Who knew? _'Meh…Not my problem, I guess…'_

"He's growing up." Jiraiya's face then contorted into a deep frown. "It seems that the fox has its grips locked tightly onto him. I saw what it's done to the boy, and quite frankly, I don't like it."

"…Were you spying on him when he was training with Ebisu?" the Copy Ninja inquired. It was not like Jiraiya-sama led a proactive lifestyle with the boy. He supposed that it went both ways between master and pupil. Some time ago, the Sandaime Hokage and the Toad Hermit had a bit of a falling-out that had driven the latter to pursue his spy network abroad. Kakashi was not privy to the details of the argument, but he knew that things came to a head before Jiraiya-sama stormed off.

Jiraiya merely shrugged his shoulders, neither confirming nor denying it. He wanted to keep tabs on Minato's legacy, despite the fact that it came with a lot of red tape. Alas, there was no crying over what had already taken place. Hiding away the pain, Jiraiya snickered a bit. "About that…it looks like your assigned tutor for the boy got overturned by Sarutobi-sensei."

A look of disbelief passed through Kakashi's facial features. "You can't be serious…"

Jiraiya willed a serious nod. "I'm afraid it's true, Kakashi. The old geezer pulled rank on you and withdrew Ebisu in favor of one of his ANBU operatives overseeing the boy's training."

"But, why would he rescind on the documents I submitted to have Ebisu train Naruto?" The Copy Ninja stood at a loss.

The Densetsu no Nin pursed his lips. "He did not revoke it, but he superseded and nullified your order in favor of his own. He must have felt that Ebisu would have dragged out and hindered Naruto's progress, instead of loading him up on jutsu after jutsu."

"…I wanted Naruto to slow down on the amount of techniques he's learning. I believe in his strength, but I feel that…he's going down…_his_ path…"

"From what I've seen of the kid," Jiraiya remarked, allaying the younger ninja's deep-seated worries, "he's nothing like Itachi. In fact, Naruto's got a personality, and a bright one, at that. Sure, he mopes around a bit when things don't go his way, but he smiles and keeps getting back up, just like his mother…"

The slip of the tongue from the wandering hermit made the younger of the two thickly swallow. It was a tender subject between all who knew her. "…Any luck on finding her?"

Jiraiya shook his head. "At the time of the sealing, only Minato's body was pressed over Naruto's with a gaping hole torn into his back. Kushina wasn't around, oddly enough. Since then, the trail went cold—no footprints, no signs of struggle…nothing. Almost like she just…vanished without a trace…"

"…Do you think she was kidnapped by someone?" He had to ask it, just to recognize the giant elephant in their conversation.

"There was nothing to confirm that allegation, Kakashi. You and I both knew that," the Gama-sennin declared with a determined look. "I know she's out there…somewhere. She would never do such a classless act as to abandon a child when he needed her most." She had to have a very good reason why she left her son to fend for himself. What if there was someone hanging something over the young woman's head at the time? What if she had been lied to by those close to her? What if this was all just a big misunderstanding? What if she did…die? Or worse…what if Konoha was to blame for her sudden disappearance?

_'No…In her own words, she "wouldn't want to go out like a chump" and "go down fighting like a warrior." If anything, she would put her life on the line and journey to hell and back for those she cared about…'_

Kakashi brought him back to reality. "I thought that…jinchuuriki die when their tailed-beast was forcefully extracted…" He was not fully sure, until someone proved correct that hanging thought.

"In most cases, yes," Jiraiya conceded, crossing his arms over his broad chest, "but you're missing the point that Kushina was a fighter. She had a never-say-die attitude and put her heart and soul in what she did. That night was surrounded with a ton of controversy; however, I still have my ears to the ground for any developments in that drawn-out case." The trail had not grown cold. In fact, things began to heat up. Kushina was speculated to harbor the Kyuubi before Naruto, but no one was any the wiser. It might have rung true that demon containers passed on when a bijuu was pulled from them, but there were very few exceptions to that claim where some had enough chakra to offset the considerable loss.

Either way, he had not been in attendance of the sealing, other than investigating the area of hearsay. Now that he thought more on it, very few knew about it, so why did it get leaked out to the public, of all things, in the first place?

He had to track down the mole, unless said saboteur already fled from Konoha, had already died or had already been killed in combat.

"At any rate, I feel that we're getting sidetracked, and that wasn't what I had in mind to discuss," the Toad Hermit mumbled, regressing to his original agenda. "I was given reluctant permission to take in the kid once his ANBU agent's two weeks expire." He turned to face up at the sliver of light produced by the moon. Konohagakure felt a little too tranquil now; like the calm before the storm. "For now, Kakashi, once he's released from the hospital, you focus on training Sasuke. He's got quite the headline match for the final rounds, I bet. You better keep a close eye on him, too."

_'Should I mention to him that I showed the Rasengan to Naruto?'_ the hardboiled veteran asked himself, before dismissing it, all together. _'Nah…I'll let Jiraiya-sama be surprised, and I'll be dying to hear about his reaction…'_

The gravity-defying hair swayed when Kakashi nodded rather tersely. "Given what happened in the Forest of Death, and my own run-in with the snake, I already know what's in store."

"So I've heard," the Toad Hermit gruffly remarked. "I don't think your kids understand that nicking Orochimaru not only was a fluke, but it will only serve to…intrigue him even more. Who knows what he plans to do, now that he has more…talent to pick like fresh flowers in a meadow."

"Eloquently put, Jiraiya-sama."

The Sage from Myoubokuzan began to walk away. "I'll be watching closely, in case things get a bit hairy…"

"Like your wild mane, sir?" Kakashi asked with a bit of humor lining his voice.

Jiraiya paused in his stride and harrumphed, turning at a profile to the younger ninja. "Hah! That's a very fitting analogy, Kakashi." Right in front of Kakashi's eyes, the taller shinobi disappeared without a trace, leaving behind a flurry of green leaves in his wake as he used a seal-less Shunshin.

Before soaring off to his apartment for the night, his mouth formed into an O-shape, signifying that he overlooked one small detail…

_'Oh, damn…after all this time, I forgot to assign someone for Sakura!'_ He had gotten too caught up in his boys to the point that he oversaw the budding genjutsu-user on the team, who was also in the final rounds. _'I gotta rectify that in a hurry!'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Aforementioned cerise-locked kunoichi stared up at the ceiling of her bedroom as she crashed for the night. Her jade eyes, now lacking focus due to impending slumber, slowly turned from the plain-looking ceiling, to her bandaged wrists, which held storage seals engraved onto her skin for her special shuriken and boomerangs, to gaze at the night sky.

_'Everything seems…so peaceful…but something feels so…off…'_

She then turned her head to see her alarm clock, which read a quarter to ten. Why did she have the nagging feeling that something felt wrong?

Earlier today, she managed to track down Haku-neesan, who had stopped by the merchants' district en route to Sakura's house. After making light talk for a few minutes, the younger of the two kunoichi asked the other for training. The ice-producing girl mulled over it for nary a second before she agreed to help out. Granted, with two different bloodlines shared between them, in what would Haku have her train? She would find out tomorrow.

_'Hey, Uchi-chan, are you still with me?'_ Sure enough, the now-hazy, chalky outline appeared within her mindscape.

**"Yeah, I'm here,"** her inner ego grumbled. **"What's bugging you, Pinky? And what's with this new nickname you're giving me?"**

_'The energy in the air…it's a little too quiet…'_ she inwardly intoned, voicing her concerns and ignoring her inner ego's query.

**"…"** Her Uchi naru Ishi pursed her lips. **"I think Snake-Face is about to pull off something big."**

_'So…'_

**"So…what?"**

_'What are _we _going to do about it, then?'_

Her inner ego sighed. **"…We caught a lucky break when we did. He's still crippled, but I don't think we left enough lasting damage on him to actually make a difference in his plans. If anything, we just got targets painted across our backs…"**

Sakura was surprised at how morose her inner self sounded. _'Well, maybe Naruto and Sasuke-kun did enough to make up for that,'_ she optimistically supplied.

**"I don't know about that, Pinky,"** the Inner Sakura flatly stated. **"We also forgot, in the rush of adrenaline, that reptiles do have some regenerative properties. By the time the final rounds are here, he may have already grown out that arm of his…just like how a lizard restores its tail after it gets lopped off."**

The genuine cherry blossom shuddered at that thought as she curled up her legs and rested her head on them. Her pajama pants surely felt soft and comfortable. _'You still didn't answer my question. Are we just going to sit around and wait for him to make his move, or are we going to bust our asses with training until we can't stand, anymore?'_

Where did that fire go from her inner persona? **"Heh…I suppose I have been rubbing off on you, after all, Pinky…"**

_'I try to learn from the best!'_ Sakura mentally chirped.

**"Well, the only thing we can do right now is to avoid Snake-Face if and when he shows up. He may not be interested in going after Sasuke, but after you or Naruto-senpai. He may be here for other purposes, but we don't know that."**

_'So, it's all guesswork from here on out, huh?'_

**"We play it by ear."** A vagrant thought passed through Sakura's Inner Will. **"Do you remember your empty threat you gave to the boys when they were at each other's throats in the forest?"** The Shadow Blossom bobbed her head with a muffled, "Yes." **"How about we make that a reality?"**

Her head popped up from her resting place. _'You mean…?'_

**"Yes…we're gonna start summoning within the month."**

The cackling laughter in her head did not soothe the green-eyed bookworm in the least. _'Is it going to be painful?'_

Inner Sakura only laughed louder.

XXXXXXXXXX

The next day, Naruto tried—many times over—to get down his training exercise, but, regrettably, the boy still fell in with little progress.

He sat by the pond under the waterfall, meditating on his errors. He unconsciously scratched his head while his canine started to tread water like a professional.

_'Focus…harmony…oneness with myself…'_

Exhaling a long huff, the bewhiskered blond slowly stood up. He summoned two shadow clones to stand as eyewitnesses to see what he had done wrong. "You," he started to order the one who stood to his right, "move over some more." He then scanned the other way to meet the eyes of his other copy. "Same goes for you."

"How far?" they both asked, blinking at the same time.

_'Whoa…creepy…'_ "Three meters each should do. I need some different points of view, and I want you to supply me some feedback when you dispel. Got it?"

"Yes, boss!" both of the doppelgangers beamed, saluting just for the hell of it.

"Let's get to work, boys!"

Getting into position, the real Naruto walked up to the lake courteously generated by his Mokuton-using instructor, eyes alight with focused willpower. He strongly pushed out every thought from his head—from cleaning up his apartment, to Hyuuga Neji, to figure out that damn ball of energy that Kakashi-sensei showed to him, to being acknowledged by the villagers who doubted in the Yondaime's sealing capabilities…

None of those mattered for right now.

With a clear head, he bucked back and tumbled forward, catching his weight as he nimbly stood erect, but upside-down in a handstand, for the countless times before, with a quartet of leaves stuck to his soles.

_'Maybe I should think about doing acrobatics if this whole ninja thing doesn't pan out…'_ He paused and then instantly shook his head, forcing out that aimless thought. He had to train to get stronger, since he had a very good reason.

Ramen waited for him at the end of the bet.

Instead of trying to do both methods at the same time, Naruto decided now to break down and try to free-float the leaves before reaching the lake.

_'Concentrate…'_

Before he knew it, the leaves began to circulate around his feet with more ease than before.

_'Think of a chakra ring right above my feet…'_

Feeling that he might have gotten the hang of it, Naruto calmly took some steps on the quieter side of the lake, away from the waterfall, which now sounded like background noise that barely registered into his ears. The wind caressed his frame as he took a few more confident strides across the water's surface.

_'I'm doing it! Yes!'_ He wanted to laugh, but that could make him lose focus and fall in…again.

The northern winds due to a passing high-pressure system picked up, cooling the mild day in Konohagakure. However, that was not the reason Naruto toppled over and fell in with a loud splash.

Within that gentle breeze, he thought he heard something that sounded like somebody calling his name.

_"Naruto…"_

_'Please, tell me you heard that, fox,'_ the boy mentally claimed as he spat water out of his mouth, keeping his head afloat.

**"Heard what?"**

_'Bah…Never mind, then…'_

The boy turned to see his temporary sensei eyeing him with great intent before his frame relaxed, letting loose a breath he held in his lungs. Much to Yamato's delight, the bet was still ongoing.

_'Heh…not for much longer, anyway…'_

Naruto unleashed a devilish smile and pointed at him. "I'm close to figuring it out, Yamato-sensei, so you better pay up when I nail it, dattebayo!"

On the other hand, that light voice that called out to him made him wonder as he stared in the direction of the sound…

To whom did it belong?

XXXXXXXXXX

Looking around Training Area Three, now vacant after a chuunin had finished using it for a bit of training, Sakura felt alone.

_'Haku-neesan told us to be here at noon, and she's fifteen minutes late!'_

**"No,"** the newly-dubbed Uchi-chan piped up. **"She's here, and it's something you didn't pick up right away…"**

_'Wait…'_

Before she had a chance to grill her Inner Will, Haku popped up right by her with a delicate frown marring her features. "You need more practice with your environmental awareness, Sakura-san," the older girl chastised, causing the pink-haired bookworm to squeak in shock and slightly lower her head in disappointment. "That's number one in your list of priorities."

"I'm…I'm sorry…" Sakura turned away from the criticizing look sent her way.

"If I were an enemy, you would have easily been taken out by now."

That definitive statement caused the green-eyed bookworm to shrink in a little due to her rebuke. "I'll…keep that in mind…"

An odd look passed over Haku's face before she cleared her throat. "At any rate, let's work on refining your taijutsu a bit. From what I saw during the preliminary matches, it can use some…adjustments…for lack of a better word."

"You mean…fine-tuning?" Sakura asked. "Why's that?" Her hand-to-hand combat seemed okay, she supposed.

For one of the brightest of the batch of genin, Sakura surely missed the obvious point. "At some point on the battlefield, you have to have a fallback strategy in case your genjutsu…"

"And youjutsu!" the rosette-haired wiz-kid clarified.

"…or youjutsu," Haku added to satiate her, "are rendered ineffective against a stronger enemy. In the event that genjutsu or ninjutsu don't affect an enemy, you still have taijutsu as a last resort to cripple your foe. In other words, Sakura-san, we're going to tweak your skill set by not wasting any movements."

"So, we're going to work mostly on efficiency in combat-type scenarios?" the younger kunoichi inquired.

"That's the gist of it!" the brunette exclaimed with a disarming smile. Then, on a whim, that smile turned maliciously deadly. "Now, think fast!"

_'What the—!"_

Before Sakura could even think, she hastily dodged a swipe from a kunai in Haku's hand.

_'This chick is bonkers!'_ She performed a quick back-handspring to avoid another calculated twist of the ninja spade.

**"I'll say…"**

_'I guess training has already started, Uchi-chan.'_

Inner Sakura sighed. She felt resigned to just give in and accept her new moniker.

XXXXXXXXXX

The head receptionist of the hospital looked up from her desk to see the person in front of her. She hid her blush pretty well. "May I help you, Hatake-san?"

The Copy Ninja brushed through his hair as he leaned in close, elbow bent on the table. "How's Sasuke's condition?"

She did her best to not faint from his smooth aura. "He's stable, still. You have clearance to see him, since you admitted him."

Turning on the charm of his illusion, Kakashi winked. "Thank you, miss." He walked into the corridor leading to the stairs when the sound of a chair rolling and a body thumping on the floor rang through his ears. A grin found its way through his half-mask. "Heh…I still got it…"

His debonair posture slumped a bit when his mood shifted into something serious. Ascending to the fifth story, the ashen-haired ninja started to jot down a little note for his currently incapacitated student. How he managed to keep his eye on the note and not trip up the stairs was beyond anyone's guess.

At any rate, Kakashi made it to Sasuke's room and checked around for any signs of foul play. He let loose a breath that he unconsciously held. _'Good…that Kabuto character hasn't come back…'_

He slowly ambled to the bedside table and left his folded note for his charge when he came to.

Before the Copy Ninja left, he hummed in thought. _'Do I have enough stamina to keep a shadow clone roaming around the village for the entire month?'_

It was a risk worth taking, after all. He needed to keep his ears and eyes alert, in case things took a turn for the worse within Konoha. Furthermore, in case his other students needed to seek him out, then he could leave just the one in place, but that meant that his doppelganger had to avoid any type of confrontation, lest it would drain his energy tank by a significant margin. _'Granted, when I summon a Kage Bunshin, it has its own reserves to draw on, but that also means that our chakra is shared to a certain extent.'_

He weighed his options. Should he summon a regular shadow clone, or one of a special variety?

_'Decisions, decisions…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

The substitute instructor looked on, with rapt interest, as Naruto meditated before he tried the exercise for the two-hundredth time…

Yes, he did count how many times the bewhiskered ninja fell into the pond with a hidden glee.

_'Well, I guess ramen is on me, then,'_ Yamato despondently reflected as he saw the blond boy confidently stride across the lake on his hands, two leaves circulating around each sole of his feet like a mesmeric circle of resonance…in the span of three days.

He supposed his carrot-on-a-string approach worked a little too well.

"Good job, Naruto-kun," the Mokuton-infused ninja piped up. "I think that's it for today."

"What?" the blond asked in confusion. Naruto's face looked pretty funny as he still stood upside-down. "It's only three in the afternoon!"

"Sometimes, you have to rest the body as part of your training," he sagaciously supplied as he stood up from his vantage point. "There's no need to burn out so early."

The blue-eyed genin sadly emitted a sigh. "Fine, Sensei…"

"We still have another two hours before we have to give up the training area, so feel free to practice your ninjutsu or taijutsu. Just…be careful." To continue overseeing his training, he summoned a clone from the very tree under which he rested. "This clone will be watching over you in the meantime."

Naruto righted himself from a cartwheel onto dry land. "Wait! Where're you going, Yamato-sensei?"

"If I told you…" His face darkened again, showing off his 'scary face' once more. "…I'd have to kill you…"

Naruto trembled in fright. "O-Okay…"

The older shinobi walked away, leaving behind a wary Naruto. "He scares me, still…"

"Creepy…" Doshaburi intoned under his breath.

"All right," the blond ninja said, shaking it off and pounded his right fist into his open left, "time to knock out that project that Kakashi-sensei had for me!" Whipping out the piece of parchment, he examined its contents. Much to his annoyance, he skimmed through the mechanics, wondering how come part of it seemed like it had been purposely erased.

**"It's a low-grade genjutsu, boy. The one-eyed copycat may not want you to know for some reason."**

_'Maybe it's because not many know about it…well, those who haven't fought in the past war. I don't know,'_ Naruto mentally answered, trying to play as the devil's advocate. _'Should I try to dispel it?'_

**"It all depends on your curiosity, boy,"** the Kyuubi intoned, voice echoing in Naruto's head.

The boy chewed on that thought for a small amount of time before coming to his decision. _'Meh, it's just a jutsu. It's not like I'll be screaming my head off when I whip it out on somebody…'_

**"That's what he said…"** the carmine phantom wickedly remarked prior to chuckling. The blond boy's face contorted into one of disgust at the joke into which he unknowingly ventured.

_'Oh, grow up, fox!'_ Naruto shouted, palming his face in his hand. _'Is that all you think about?'_

**"I want action! I crave for carnality and blood!"**

_'Yeah…you're not getting either any time soon, so knock it off, Fuzz-Butt!'_ Naruto then mulled over the first step, ignoring the crimson demon's pouts. _'So, I'm going to need a few water balloons, huh?'_

XXXXXXXXXX

A cool breeze wafted through the village as Sarutobi Asuma—now back in his jounin attire—took a stroll during the evening, cigarette lit like a small beacon of light and hands shoved down his pockets. Apparently, Kurenai did not want him to smoke in her company, so he respected her wishes. He glanced up at the full moon on the fourth night of the reprieve—the eleventh of July.

_'Twenty-six more days, huh?'_

So far, Shikamaru had been going through the motions of training, but that mostly comprised of shougi matches with the bearded jounin…and he constantly lost, like always.

The poor boy seemed to never get motivated, at all. _"I'll get to training eventually, even though it's so troublesome,"_ he heard the boy say over the span of a few days.

The lackadaisical deer-rancher had what it took to become a chuunin; the problem lay in the fact that his lack of motivation hindered him from truly shining. His intelligence quotient at two hundred proved for a remarkable asset to Konoha's roster…

…if only he could just light a fire under that kid's ass…

As he rounded the corner, he thought he heard sounds of commotion from a high-topped building. He then assumed he heard the sound of…shifting sand followed by a muffled scream. After that, things grew still.

_'Could I be imagining things?'_ Shaking off that errant musing, the chain-smoking ninja easily shoved that off as impossible. _'Not now. Gotta keep a clear head…'_

The Hokage's son jumped between the walls of two buildings before standing on a low-lying roof, a few meters from where he heard the sounds. _'Wait…who's over there?'_ The moonlight, albeit bright and luminescent, could not illuminate and expose the two individuals cajoling under it. _'They both seem guarded…'_

Suddenly, one of the two made his move and intercepted another figure that was crouched around a corner, his hitai-ate glistening in the available light. Asuma's sharp eyes clearly saw the chiseled leaf insignia on both forehead protectors. _'What in the burning hells is going on up there?'_

As the onlooker dashed up the rooftops to investigate further, the third entity moved to handle the interloper, and that was when he felt the shift in chakra. Asuma's eyes almost bugged out. _'A wind-user? That has to be a high-level Suna shinobi!'_ Adrenaline started to gush through the chain-smoking ninja's system as he sped up, fight or flight response on a hair trigger waiting to be pulled.

The figure—the intruder of the supposed meeting—got cornered by the other two ninja, and Asuma immediately recognized his fellow comrade. _'Hayate! Damn it, man! What have you gotten yourself into?'_

It felt like an eternity to the grisly Sarutobi. Time seemingly stood still when a blade of wind-natured chakra cleaved right through the sword-wielding shinobi's flak jacket like severing a thread.

Acting on impulse, Asuma procured his patented trench knives and chucked one at the faceless enemies, causing them to jump away and peter out in smoke.

The only conscious man on top of the building sucked his teeth in distaste. _'Too late…'_ he grimly reflected as he arrived on the scene. Hayate's eyes were fluttering due to shock, and blood freely flowed from his gaping chest wound. A surge of urgency filtered through Asuma's veins as his comrade's life hung in the balance, and he had to act fast to save him.

This was Hayate's small window of opportunity to pull through…or journey on into another world…

XXXXXXXXXX

Small, silver needles flew in a carefully packed salvo toward their target.

Said target, whose eyes remained closed, focused on keeping cool. Then, suddenly, green eyes burned in resolve when they opened up, clashing with the bright azure of the daytime sky.

Sakura hastily pulled out a kunai from her utility pouch and twirled the ninja spade in her hands, ready to meet the senbon barrage from Haku.

The first shiny needle came to puncture her left shoulder, but the green-eyed kunoichi nudged her tool to redirect its motion away from her. The subsequent senbon flew to disable a nerve in her knee had she not bent low to disrupt the trajectory. Quickly recovering, Sakura front-flipped over three more that had originally aimed at her torso from her standing position. Another flick of the wrist sent a senbon back to its caster, which made her catch the silver needle between her index and middle fingers.

A bit winded, but still on her feet, the wiz-kid of Team Seven looked at her personal trainer with a strong look, unreservedly asking for criticism. How did she fare in the five-second interval?

"Impressive…" the ice-mistress intoned with a bob of her head. "Your reaction time is quickly gaining ground, Sakura-san."

Not lowering her guard, the smaller kunoichi smirked. "Thanks for the appraisal, Haku-neesan."

The older female ninja relaxed her posture. "It's near lunchtime. Care to get something to eat?"

Sakura appreciated the offer, but she shook her head. "Sorry, but I have some personal training that I have to do. Thanks, but…you go on ahead."

Haku appeared sad, as noted by the downcast look in her brown irises. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, really," the green-eyed bookworm answered as honestly and as truthfully as she could. "Enjoy yourself!"

With that send-off, the Hyouton-heiress nodded and walked off to the nearest eatery, battle kimono fluttering in the light breeze. "I shall see you later, Sakura-san," she remarked with a wave of her hand.

Once her personal trainer was out of sight, she crossed her arms over her face, forced open the two chakra gates within her mind and drew out her Inner Will. She had to kneel down in a crouch, due to the pounding headache produced from drawing out her more sadistic ego.

"Ugh…" she groaned, holding her head in her hands. "I need to get used to this…"

Inner Sakura gently tapped her foot on the ground. "Damn right you do!" she boomed. "No one's going to wait around while you recover, but that will be for another time, I suppose."

"All right," the true cherry blossom—the rosette—grated out, shaking her head of the slight bout of vertigo. "I called you out here so we can get started with this summoning technique. First of all, how is it going to work, since most require a binding signature in blood?" She noticed her other self's hands outstretched and reaching out to her. "Huh?"

"Hold hands with me, Pinky," the brunette clarified, pushing up her hands with a serious look on her face.

Feeling a tad uneasy, Sakura placed her palms over her other half's set before pressing down on them. "Okay…What now, Uchi-chan?"

Green eyes instantly turned away as she sucked her teeth. "Why do you keep calling me that?" she mumbled under her breath, before facing her outer self. "We're going to travel to the World of Shadows…Soto-chan…"

Stunned jade met serene green. "Eh? What do you mean?"

"Just…relax, and enjoy the ride…" The dark-haired Sakura gave the pink-haired girl a placid smile as she intertwined her digits with her. A shadowy haze enveloped the two as the genuine cherry blossom's eyes darted about.

"Relax, Pinky. It's only a Kage Hakobi that you also know."

Darkness enshrouded her vision as she felt herself in a controlled freefall with her inner persona.

Suddenly, the wiz-kid from Team Seven felt the bottom give way, causing the two to descend at a faster velocity. As they fell through what resembled dark clouds, the authentic cherry blossom scanned her surroundings.

She felt like she had plummeted into a photo-negative version of her own world. She managed to pick out the notable landmarks that paralleled her home village, but one thing stood out to her the most…

Everything was upside-down.

"Welcome to the Shadow Realm, Soto-chan," she heard her Inner Will comment, breaking her focus from the background.

"Everything seems so…topsy-turvy," Sakura deadpanned.

"That's because the normal laws of physics don't apply here," Uchi-chan clarified. "Why do you think we're floating on a white disk made up of our own shadows? Hell yeah!"

"…Good point," the outer Sakura conceded while looking around again. "So, is this a parallel world akin to up above…or in another plane…or wherever?"

"In a manner of speaking, yes, you're right on the money, Pinky." Her more adventurous side controlled their shadow to float over the inverse village. "While we're in this place, you will use your chakra to draw out the Kage Gen'ei that will be your personal summon and companion. You get a few chances, so if you don't manage to draw out and materialize a familiar, then don't worry too much, okay?"

Sakura wondered why her Inner Will was being…kind, all of a sudden. Was this a way to lull the poor girl into a false sense of security? "You're not playing a trick on me, are you, Uchi-chan?"

"Nope," she replied. "I'm just letting you settle until the pain-filled episode you will have later ruins your experience…" She began to chuckle under her breath.

The cerise-locked kunoichi hummed while contemplating. "You take pleasure in pain. Are you a masochist?"

"That means you are, too, Soto-chan, but you tend to hide that fact," the inner ego rebutted, eyes lidded with a smug smirk that easily reminded her of her crush.

The real-deal bookworm blinked. She never really thought of that before. Why else would she throw herself at the boy who did not really want her? Or was it a sort of defense mechanism; a type of wall that needed tearing down? Did Sasuke-kun push away everyone else due to the fear that he might lose someone else if he got too close to him or her? His family was brutally taken from him in one night, which impacted him from then on. It was left to reason at how closed off he became, shutting and locking the door to his heart, denying anyone entry.

On that same note, was that another way of coping with her pain, by latching onto the object of her desire and misery, in order to help 'heal the loner's heart,' as it stood?

This almost felt like she was venturing into the deep recesses of her soul to discover herself…

"I see the gears are finally turning in your head, Pinky," the brunette noted when she saw her outer self's jade orbs glaze over in retrospection. "You're catching on quick. This journey of self-discovery is one that you alone must do to find your spirit guide."

"Well, aren't you my tour guide for this place, anyway?"

"That's not the point," she deflected. "This Shadow Phantom will grow with you as your ass gets stronger. Think of it like a symbolic relationship between you and your familiar."

Green eyes were back in focus. "Un," Sakura agreed with a slight nod. "So…should I meditate and channel my chakra to act as a magnet to my summoned creature?"

"Don't ask me! Just try it out and do it! Shannaro!"

"Can I let go of your hand now? Or will the link with the Shadow World cease?"

"I think you're so far into deep sleep that it doesn't really matter…"

"What?" Surprise lined the rosette's voice. "I'm asleep in the real world?"

"Oh, did I forget to mention that?" The index finger on Inner Sakura's right hand made its way to the bottom lip as she pondered over that tidbit of news that she did not relay.

"You could've warned me, Uchi-chan!" the green-eyed bookworm bellowed.

The inner ego just examined her nails and picked between them, whistling for good measure.

The genuine-article Haruno just grumbled. "Fine, then…" She sat down on what she felt was a type of ground, but it was just the ivory circle upon which she stood that provided a base for her body. "…Let's do this!"

She sat still and closed her eyes, easily slipping into meditation. Whether it was because she fell asleep that made it easier served as a moot point. Her chakra willingly pushed and pulled away from her as it circulated about her body, trying its best to conscientiously seek out its polar frequency.

After several minutes—or hours, for she could not tell—of reaching out for her summon, a dark, oozy mass fell 'up' from the photo-negative town and crawled in curiosity toward the new source of energy emitted in the World of Shadows. The obscure blob felt around the drifting chakra from this pink-haired girl and touched it, establishing a link right away.

The strange material started to bubble and froth, forming the shape and likeness of an equine effigy with wispy plumes of smoke drifting from its bulky frame of sixteen hands long—or sixty-four inches from head to hind hoof.

Feeling a new presence around her, Sakura slowly opened her eyes to stare face-to-face with an inquisitive look from a mare conjured from the essence of the world from where it came, its snout flaring in breaths.

"So, you're my companion?" the pink-haired genin asked with blatant interest.

As a response, the mare's front hoof scuffed the area once…then twice…and then it bolted upward.

"Eh? What the hell? Come back!" she roared to it, but it spiraled up and out of sight. She felt a hand on her shoulder, forcing her to turn her head to the side to see identical green eyes.

"This is where your challenge begins, Soto-chan," Inner Sakura explained with haste. "You have to subdue your familiar to make it yours to summon at your beck and call. Now, go! Time's off the essence!"

"Where will it run off to?" she asked as the duo started to float up and into the nebulous clouds of the world's atmosphere.

"It's probably found a way out from your unconscious body and out into the material world, by using you as a conduit for escape," Uchi-chan explicated.

Sakura looked up at the white light leading out of the world and back into her own mind and body. _'How long do I have?'_ she asked herself, leaving her inner ego to answer that hanging question.

"For some of the Haruno before you, it took days, but I have faith in you, Pinky! Good luck!"

Green eyes stared unflinchingly at the other set, before they burned anew with strength of mind. "I'll do my best!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Kakashi, now on the outskirts of Konoha and near a plateau, looked up at the position of the sun as he waited for his target student to arrive.

_'He should be here by now…'_

He had given the green light to Pakkun to wait for Sasuke outside the hospital, when he got released for good health, and asked that he follow him to where the ashen-haired assassin was located.

Sure enough, the Copy Ninja glanced down at smaller digits firmly gripping the edge before the arm and body came up with it. "Ah, you made it, Sasuke."

The onyx-eyed Uchiha gave off his confident smirk as he righted himself. "I wouldn't miss training for the world."

"Well," Kakashi began, "you already missed out on a few days, so in a way, we're kind of behind."

"What about the dobe and Sakura?"

"…" He scratched the cloth lining the bottom of his face. "I left Naruto in capable hands."

Sasuke snorted. "You still haven't answered with where you placed Sakura."

The Copy Ninja cleared his throat. "Let's…just focus on training, shall we?"

"You forgot about her, didn't you?" the Uchiha scion remarked with a sideways grin.

"Maybe I have, but that's not the point," the jounin instructor helplessly amended, nipping the debate in the bud. "First of all, I need to get a read on your chakra nature, just to make sure I maximize your training routine."

"Hn…" the younger one grunted with his hand out like he wanted money, eyes closed. "Where's the chakra paper?" Kakashi fumbled through his flak jacket to procure the leaf of paper for his charge. With relative ease, the rookie of the year channeled his essence through the piece and was met with astonishment…

The sheet creased in on itself, slightly burning at the edges.

"Hm…" A dark eye appeared thoughtful as he hummed. "Maybe that was why it took you longer to master your fire, Sasuke. You don't even have the base nature to properly match it."

Sasuke assumed a sour look. "Then what was with that one-on-one training before the Chuunin Trials?"

"I wanted to personally gauge you on your skill," the older ninja answered, "to see where you fell."

Black eyes looked baffled, despite his talents. "Say what, Kakashi?"

"Do you remember how easy it was for you to learn the Shinkei Douyou no Jutsu?" the masked man recalled, reflecting on the Nerve Disturbance Technique that he commanded Sasuke to use on him after he completed it. He felt numb in his arm for a minute before he evened out the foreign electricity with his own nature, but what stunned him more was how fast the boy picked up on it. He almost missed Sasuke's hesitant nod. "Well, there you go!"

The lone wolf of Team Seven looked at his teacher like he did not make much sense. "So, what do we do now?"

The Copy Ninja slipped into combat training mode, goofiness tossed to the wind. "You're going to be in the fight of your life, Sasuke. On that, there is no doubt."

Sasuke merely scoffed at that. "Like I'll lose to some foreign shinobi…" He could not die now, for he had a goal to achieve…

He paused. Was he really certain with obtaining revenge…or settling a score to right a wrong out of the debt owed to his family for closure?

Before he delved deeper into that vein of thought, Kakashi brought him back to real time. He clucked his teeth like he was about to chide a child who knew better than to act prideful. "I don't think you really understand the gravity of the situation that Lady Luck has placed on your shoulders. Gaara…" he stopped himself before rephrasing it better, "…is a weapon, created by Sunagakure's conditioning, and is your opponent next month."

"What's his power?"

"He wields sand that acts of its own accord. It reacts independently of Gaara's will, unless he channels it to crush and overwhelm a foe. It protects him, and his match with Zaku showed that he has an armor of sand tightly packed around his body, to prevent him from sustaining further, physical damage. It's like the ultimate defense; the unbreakable shield."

"How about I get trained to become the spear that can penetrate that so-called unbreakable shield?" the Sharingan-heir simply reasoned, shrugging his shoulders. He remembered a paradox involving the impenetrable shield and the indestructible spear that could cut through everything, but it was all a blur to him.

The taller shinobi scratched his scalp. "That was the plan, initially."

"Initially, you say? Did it change a bit?"

Kakashi shook his head in the negative. "Not at all…" He then cleared his throat. "Well, we have a lot of ground to cover. Do you think you're up to the challenge? There's no backing down, now."

The genin-in-training cracked his knuckles while donning an impassive face. "I have an objective to meet, so count me in. Otherwise, why would I be here? It's not like I'm going rock-climbing or anything…"

_'Heh…You have no idea, Sasuke…Welcome to hell…'_ The infamous eye-smile broke out in full force across the exposed skin of his visage. "Well, then, let's start!"

XXXXXXXXXX

The Mokuton-wielding ninja distractedly stroked his chin as he considered the awaiting blond right before his eyes. He already got down the chakra exercise in a few days, so what kind of busy work should he give to the boy before the next week's chakra control technique?

Taking into account his Kage Bunshin, Yamato came to a solution. _'I got it…'_

"Naruto-kun, have you ever considered learning more cloning techniques?" he asked the blue-eyed genin, who had a strange look crossing his face before pursing his lips in thought.

"Actually, it hadn't crossed my mind, Sensei," Naruto responded. For the moment, he just wanted to restore the jutsu that he could not access. "Why do you ask?"

The older shinobi scratched his cheek and smiled. "I think it'd be a fantastic idea to diversify your cloning arsenal."

The bewhiskered blond blinked twice. "Diversify…my clones?"

"Well, coming from a prankster's mentality, I thought you would entertain the idea to throw your opponent even further off-guard by mixing in various elemental replicas. With Mizu Bunshin, when they get disrupted, they turn into water…"

Naruto hummed before intervening. "That means the water that comes from those clones can fuel my Suiton jutsu…that is, if my opponent isn't geared toward the water element, which could, in turn, backfire on me."

Surprised that the kid caught on, Yamato nodded. "Correct. What about adding the Earth Release into the matrices of your Kage Bunshin?"

Despite his initial misnaming of the jutsu, the mention of the Earth Release Shadow Clone provoked a dark look to creep over Naruto's facial features. "Now that I think about it…that was the same jutsu that Orochimaru used on me before almost knocking me out of the forest…"

"Naruto," the temporary instructor piped up, getting the pointy-eared genin's attention, "I know you're upset about your predicament, but try not to dwell on what happened. I don't fault you for detesting how powerless you were against Orochimaru, but that just means you have to get stronger if you want to protect the things you value the most."

"Do you hate him for what he's done to you?" he hotly asked.

The genetically-altered ninja glanced off into the distance with a weary sigh. "…I consider it a blessing in disguise that I managed to survive, when the other fifty-nine children didn't."

That was rather humbling for the enigmatic blond, who looked down and chewed over what his part-time sensei just revealed to him.

"As I was saying," the elder shinobi began to speak after a small, pregnant pause, "when those types of clones get disrupted and revert back to their base element, you can then use the leftover material as a foundation for other techniques. You can turn those setbacks into hidden surprises. Furthermore, you can perform a Kawarimi among your clones to randomize the type of clone your enemy will strike."

"So…I should sneak in attacks while I keep my enemy occupied with my clones to keep their attention away from what I want to do…right?"

"You're smarter than you let on, Naruto-kun," Yamato mentioned with open amazement, "but, in any case, yes. Deception is the key to victory, even though some cry foul that it's nothing but a dirty trick wrapped up in a different package." He rolled his eyes. "If it helps win a decisive victory, then why make a fuss about it?"

Naruto sagely nodded. "You make a good point. Ninja are all about cheap tricks and underhanded plays to get the upper hand. That's what Saru-jijii implied to me: sometimes, cheaters swindle you if you're blind to the fact, and in other cases, cheaters can prosper if they don't get caught…"

"Like in the first phase of the exams?" the Mokuton-infused shinobi helpfully supplied.

"Well, yeah, but I didn't cheat, then."

"Hm…" Yamato shook his head. "Regressing to the matter at hand, do you care to learn the jutsu for water and earth clones or not?"

The blond tapped his chin in thought. "About integrating an element into a shadow clone…is it possible for it to be filled with water? I mean, more bang for your ryou, if you ask me."

"Huh…" Yamato forgot about that. "Impressive observation. Well, would you want to learn Suiton and Doton Kage Bunshin, then, instead?"

"Your sales pitch already reeled me in!" Naruto boomed with an explosive grin. "Let's get cracking, Yamato-sensei!"

Before they had a chance to start, however, a load of shouts and loud ruckus erupted from the merchants' quarter of the village.

_'What in the world?'_ ran through both of their heads at the same time.

XXXXXXXXXX

Haruno Sakura was not having a good day, so far.

Gnawing her bottom lip in evident frustration, the rosette-haired kunoichi stalked high and low for that blasted horse! Unfortunately, she did not have much luck with subjugating the wild animal.

_'By the gods, I hope my nose isn't broken!_' She consciously rubbed the stinging sensation from the harrowing ordeal a few minutes prior…

_As soon as she woke up in the world in which she was familiar, Sakura raced off, trying to get a feel for that shadowy chakra permeating the village._

_"I gotta find that thing before it causes unwanted attention, damn it!" she shouted to no one in particular, legs brimming with adrenaline and chakra._

_Inner Sakura was of no help; because she said nothing, save for a snicker or two. _**'This is getting interesting…'**

_Eventually, the cerise-locked cherry blossom pinpointed the mare's location, thinking of an on-the-fly strategy to keep it in place._

_Offhandedly, she recalled that horses liked crunchy things, so she quickly swung by the produce stand to buy a carrot from one of the kind merchants. He had very little teeth when he tried to smile, but that was beside the point._

'It's stopped near the bridge where we usually meet for team drills!' _she mentally remarked as she felt the familiar's essence pause in one spot. Jade eyes frantically looked around as she scaled to the rooftops in search of the wayward mare. The wispy cloud of smoke drifting from its robust frame caused it to stick out like a sore thumb. _'There it is! Now, time to put my plan to action!'

_With one of her kunai, Sakura gently poked a small hole through the newly bought vegetable and threaded ninja wire through it, tugging the knot tightly. Once finished, green eyes looked at where the female horse rested, eating grass near the river running through it. She slowed down her breathing and kept her presence as low-key as possible, in order to not make the Shadow Phantom flee. Sneaking around to reach a vantage point from the trees, the wiz-kid of Team Seven dangled the carrot from the string and dropped it onto the ground, making a soft sound that alerted the mare. Tilting its head in curiosity, the lithe equine carefully trotted up to the strange-looking root vegetable, before taking a few test nibbles on it._

'It's distracted!' _Sakura triumphantly crowed before she tried to jump on the mare's back._

_Sadly, for her, she yelled out, "Banzai!" as she rustled the foliage surrounding her on her swift descent down._

_That simple action freaked out the mare before it took off._

_No, scratch that. The animal bucked and bolted, leaving a trail of dust in its wake._

_And…with nothing to land on, Sakura ate dirt when she crash-landed, folding up like a sheet of paper—heels well over her head. Hard._

_"Ow…" her mumbled groan of agony reverberated through the ground._

_Inner Sakura rolled to the side, bursting with jovial laughter._

The pink-haired girl shook off that one mistake that cost her valuable time.

_'It's already more trouble than what it's worth…'_ She let loose a defeated sigh. The kunoichi-in-training suddenly sensed movement and the sound of swift galloping on the other side of the building, with the occasional shouts and curses thrown its way.

"Damned animal! Someone needs to tranquilize that thing!"

"Eek!"

"Whoa!"

Taking that as a very strong hint that the midnight-toned mare was in the vicinity, she jumped on, yet again, another roof and started to run hot after its trail.

XXXXXXXXXX

Deep into the heart of the merchants' quarter, a gray-haired merchant with a green wrap covering his head pushed his cart full of delectable, verdant heads of cabbage. His olive-toned eyes shone with wonder as he ventured to this place—Konoha—to sell his lovely produce. He took his time to sniff the crisp air, drinking in the splendid atmosphere.

He aimlessly walked around, ashen beard swaying to and fro as he exchanged his cabbages with the townsfolk.

Just as he was about to finish a transaction, his ears perked up and caused him to look to his left. The shouts of warning flew all around like an angry swarm of insects.

"Watch out!"

"Wild animal on the loose!"

"Get out of the way!"

With a large cloud of dust billowing out behind it, a frantic horse, who had a hide as dark as the twilight hour, whinnied and charged right at him in a full gallop.

His jade eyes grew to the size of saucers. _'Not again!'_

The man dressed in the loose-fitting yellow long shirt, olive pants and green vest dashed out of the main street when the horse barreled through his cart with no sign of stopping and obliterated his one-man carriage, heads of his precious vegetables blown every which way, along with the wood that made up said cart.

"No!" the middle-aged man yelled to the heavens, shock and horror lining his impotent cries. "My cabbages!"

To add insult to injury, one of his cabbage heads landed right near him, only for a pink-haired girl to drop from out of the sky and crush it under her heel as she dashed off after the equine in hot pursuit.

"Get back here, you damn horse!" he heard the child bellow, presence fading down the dusty avenue.

The poor cabbage merchant never caught a break; misfortune followed him like it was his own shadow. The man held his head in his hands in defeat and bemoaned his plight in unbecoming silence.

Kakashi—or rather, a specially designed clone of the infamous Copy Ninja—walked up to the vegetable mogul with pity in his exposed eye. "And to think that I was in the mood for some cabbage today…" Shrugging its shoulders, the doppelganger began to walk off to parts unknown, orange book in hand. "Oh, well…I'll try some dango, instead." The replica whistled to himself as he trod at a sedated pace.

XXXXXXXXXX

Blazing hues of orange intermingled with blue in the evening sky as Sakura, who was almost out of breath and legs cramping from running all over Konoha, finally found the mare resting near a stream to take a few delicate sips of water.

_'I'm not going to screw up this chance!'_ she thought with ardent determination. She stalked her target like a tiger would in the jungle, ready to unexpectedly pounce on her prey. Getting a good view of the equine's flank, Sakura silently leapt out of her hiding spot—two meters up on a tree branch—and landed on its back, which made the mare wildly buck from the added pressure onto its spine, trying its best to dislodge the unwanted rider.

Sakura, meanwhile, held on for dear life as she firmly gripped the horse's neck, feeling a bit irritated that this trial by summoning familiar lasted a bit too long for her tastes. She wanted to throw in the towel, but she was so close. She could feel it!

Either way, since when did her other two teammates give up?

Well, other than the fiasco in the Forest of Death, when Sasuke-kun relinquished the scroll to Snake-Face, but that was a _very big_ exception in a no-win situation. She gave that a free pass, anyhow.

Exhausted from zipping through the village, the mare finally settled down from its previous, unruly state, breathing heavily and nostrils dripping nasal fluid.

"There, there," Sakura cooed, soothing the linear mane on the mare's head. "No need to run. I'm your friend, okay?" The equine softly snorted. "Hmph…Showed you right! Shannaro! Now, since you're calmer, will you listen to me at least?" A noncommittal grunt emerged from the mare's chest cavity. She took that as a sign of assent and sighed. "Good, because I have the perfect name for you…Kuroake…"

The mare, now dubbed Kuroake—the "Black Dawn"—neighed in delight of her new name before she petered out in hazy smoke. Sakura dropped into a crouch when the horse dispelled, her energy spent.

_'So…how was that, Uchi-chan? You seem awfully quiet during this whole ordeal.'_

**"I was too busy laughing to really care, Pinky, but, all in all, you were damn good! Hah!"** Her inner ego wiped a stray tear from her eye from the hilarity.

_'Oh, great…Thanks, I guess…'_ the rosette-haired kunoichi mumbled, lifting a hand to wipe the sweat from her brow as she sat by the brook. She could definitely use a shower after this bothersome task…

**"Either way, congratulations are in order, Soto-chan. You can now call forth your Kage Hinba at any time, if you have the right amount of energy to perform the summoning."**

_'That's good, because I'm beat!'_ Sakura leaned back on the riverbank, arms and legs splayed out like she was about to make a snow angel, and gazed up at the yellow-tinted clouds mixing with the orange backdrop of the setting sun. She sensed it; that growing drive for greater strength. The thirteen-year-old girl closed her eyes and breathed in the freshness of the grass surrounding her, feeling more complete than she ever had been before.

And to think…she owed this soul-searching journey to her blond teammate, who she initially wrote off as a bumbling dunderhead. Where would she be now without him coming across those Haruno-clan scrolls?

XXXXXXXXXX

A single eyebrow twitched on the brooding Uchiha's face as he strained his muscles in the cooling evening, charcoal-black eyes burning in fury and rage, which greatly contrasted with the starlit sky.

_'Kakashi, when I'm done with this training…I'm going to do major bodily harm to you and wipe that cheery-eyed smile right off your face!'_

The lone wolf of Team Seven scaled the rocky crevasse…with a humongous boulder tied around his waist and dangling a meter or so down.

"Welcome to Hell Week, Sasuke!" the Copy Ninja shouted from up above. "It's only going to get worse from here on out!"

Sasuke grumbled at his quandary, teeth clenching from the rigorous strain on his frame.

"You will thank me later!" he heard his instructor call out to him, a sadistic mirth creeping through the intonation at his expense.

_'Yeah…'_ he thought resolutely, mind not wavering in the least. _'You're so going down, you slave-driver…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

The week seemed to fly by in Naruto's point of view as he channeled his essence to conjure two, specially-designed shadow clones—one filled to the brim with water, and the other with sloppy earth. A single yip alerted him of his little cloudburst zigzagging along the manmade pond in the center of the training field. All he saw was an ocher-hued fuzz ripping and running atop of the water, trying to catch a few butterflies. It made for a heartwarming scene, Naruto glibly thought.

So far, he liked this strict training schedule that Yamato-sensei had going for him. He practiced hard for four hours, starting at noon, and end at around four or so every day, just to crunch in some time alone to perfect that little project Kakashi-sensei had for him. Thus far, he was met with decent results.

Instantly remembering what he had inadvertently done to the can of soup, the boy applied it to spinning around the liquid in the water balloon in many directions to make the latex party favor burst from the rising pressure. He found it absolutely amazing that he had been able to do just that with only one hand. The first stage of that particular technique was considered done, in the boy's blue eyes.

And now, after seeing his completed works, he forcefully dispelled them, causing them to burst into a small deluge and slimy muck, respectively. With a few other hand seals, the fresh water swirled around his fingertips, courtesy of the Suiton: Kyuusui no Jutsu—or the Water Release: Water Absorption Technique, as he kneaded the mass into a ball with his chakra, before he thrust out his cupped hands.

**"Suiton: Karyuu no Jutsu!"** the blond commanded from within.

The sphere of liquid between his open palms wildly spun out as a roaring, spiraling water cannon that carried with it the power of a locomotive and pounded against a rock jutting up from the ground.

"Heh…" Naruto chuckled. "I knew I'd get down that jutsu."

_'And to think that this was developed from bad chakra control in the forest…'_ he vaguely recalled as an afterthought, thinking on that failed attempt at a Water Encampment Wall against that now-dead Zaku guy.

Shaking off that errant thought, the bewhiskered genin spun around on his heels, flying through hand seals and landed on the Seal of the Serpent. Pressing his right palm into the ground, the mud left behind from his earth-infused shadow clone started to bubble and harden, quickly lifting out of the ground.

_'Daichi Kobu no Jutsu is a success!'_ he mentally crowed. It felt like he found another part of himself all over again.

"Think fast, Naruto-kun!"

The shout from the Mokuton ninja forced Naruto to turn around, seeing a barrage of tagged kunai flying his way. His eyes grew to the size of dinner plates. _'Oh, crud…'_

_U. Saru. Inu. Mi._

_'Hare. Monkey. Dog. Serpent.'_

**"Doton: Gansou no Jutsu!"**

The four hand seals Naruto used converted the Dry Land Swelling back into its sludgy consistency and formed a dome around him, adding more dirt to the mix, before forming into a rock-hard dome as the ninja spades imbedded themselves into his newly constructed defense. Hearing sizzles on the outside, the blond boy sunk himself into the ground as the exploding tags detonated, destroying his Rock Formation Technique.

Once the dust settled, Yamato snickered at his impromptu surprise attack from the shady tree, keeping the boy sharp on his surroundings. Hopefully, he did not startle the kid too much.

He turned to see a small hole begin to form in the earth in front of him. The small crack grew larger as Naruto jumped out, dust flaking off him by the handful, enraged look fixed on his face.

"What the hell, Sensei?" he bellowed. "You could've killed me!"

"Ah, but that would have been a failure on your part for not acting fast and on your toes," Yamato countered just as easily.

"For your information, I was testing out my ninjutsu, damn it! I didn't ask for a spar…or a surprise attack!"

"Touchy, are we?" the older shinobi facetiously remarked while he stood up. "Anyway, I wanted to get your attention for a minute."

"Well, you got it!"

"Watch your tone…" Yamato's face comically darkened again, setting Naruto straight with a small whimper coming from him. It was the only effective method to keep the boy cowed. "Now that there's one week remaining for your training from me, it's time that we move on to the next chakra-training exercise." Naruto decided to keep quiet, lest another outburst would put the boy back in line with the man's scare tactic. "You," he pointed at the boy and then toward the cataract, "are going to scale that waterfall with your feet. Think of it like water walking, but taken to the extreme."

The pointy-eared genin blinked and then gulped. "I'm going…to walk up that thing?"

"Let's raise the bar a bit…" With the Tiger Seal, the genetically-altered ninja moved the cliff upward by about two more meters, followed by the Ram Seal, which expanded the cascade as the volume of water flowing down grew by a significant amount.

"I love those jutsu, Sensei," Naruto piped up in a small voice, still admiring the Doton: Doryuu Jouheki and Suiton: Takitsubo no Jutsu, "but this is torture…"

"Now that you've recalibrated your chakra system with gravity," Yamato continued, paying no mind to the blond's protests, "we're going to work against it, this time." He turned to the genin for further explanation. "You will have to walk up and constantly adjust the flow of your chakra with respect to the water. To further refine your internal balance, you get to strain the muscles in your legs to run and defy gravity as you walk up the waterfall. Going up and down once is a cycle. By the time you finish within the week, I want you to successfully perform at least two cycles of scaling this waterfall. Any questions?"

The shaggy-haired blond simply sighed out the oncoming fatigue. "No, Sensei…" He tightly tied his orange-clothed forehead protector. His face turned flinty with a fierce will to overcome this obstacle. "Let's go!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Sarutobi Asuma paced around the hospital's lobby, waiting to hear the results of the ninja he managed to save, and just in the nick of time a few days back.

"Excuse me, but are you the Hokage's son?" one of the nurses on-duty asked the burly man.

The chain-smoking jounin—who really wanted to burn a cigarette—grumbled at that title. "Yes, that's me."

She extracted from a manila folder the report pertaining to the victim. "I believe these are all in order, Sarutobi-sama."

"Please, I don't care for formalities," he brushed off her overt politeness as he received the data to send to his dad. "Just call me Asuma."

The attendant bowed before leaving the hefty man's presence, leaving him to examine the report on his fellow Konoha comrade.

_'If only I were a few minutes late, then that would have been it for him…'_

There was no use in trying to wake him up, seeing now that he had been placed into a medically induced coma.

Luckily, to pry information from a half-dead ninja, he had an ace in the hole, even though it might be a delicate process that put both practitioner and subject at risk…

What better way to find the culprits than to call in his charge's father, Yamanaka Inoichi?

_'Time to call in a favor…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Teal eyes blinked as he stood outside the door to his family business, Yamanaka Flower, thinking what he heard was absurd beyond belief. "You want me to…what, Asuma?"

The bearded jounin—his peer—sighed. "I need you to probe Gekkou Hayate's mind to find out who did this to him."

"What happened?"

"I'm not sure. It happened during the night when I was out on a stroll."

_'Smoking, like always…I bet Kurenai put you out…you whipped bastard…'_ Inoichi jokingly thought at the cost of his companion's dignity. _'Shikaku was right: women are troublesome…'_

"So, you were taking a walk and then…what else?" Asuma then told him the rest of the story as he listened with great intent. "Hm…It seems like we have a mole to pull from its hole, then."

"If you do this for me," Asuma reasoned, "then not only would we be one step closer to unraveling this mystery, but it would also benefit your daughter and the rest of the kids as well." He entertained the notion of protecting the king, at all costs, even if it meant putting his life in jeopardy to ensure that.

"…I'll see what I can do. I'll wait until Hayate's condition improves."

"That is, if he improves, Inoichi." Uncertainty crept into Asuma's speech. "There's no telling where his direction will go as of right now."

"Have a little faith, Asuma," the mind-walking jounin lightheartedly added. "Pray that he pulls through, and when he gets better, I'll poke through his mind. Deal?"

They shook hands on it. "Deal. I'll keep you posted, if Hayate-kun's health gets better or worse. If it starts slipping downhill, then you'll have to act fast."

"I'll still get the job done, Asuma."

XXXXXXXXXX

Two-and-a-half weeks have elapsed in preparation for the Chuunin Selection Final Rounds, and Sakura managed to increase her environmental awareness by an astounding ten meters, which might not have been much for a Hyuuga or an Uchiha, but for one with normal eyesight, she took it good-naturedly. Haku-neesan rarely, if ever, snuck up on her without her knowing.

Keeping on her toes while dodging sneak attacks from the odd, ice-conjuring kunoichi tended to do just that…just like now, on her seven o'clock position.

In the blink of an eye, Sakura whipped out and brandished her chakrams like a pair of brass knuckles, translucent tendrils of gray vapor drifting off the polished metal as they intercepted a kunai slash from the Hyouton mistress. From the brief stalemate, Sakura used her knee to nudge the older girl off her, creating an out for her to cartwheel to the right to avoid another swipe.

Now came the senbon—Haku-neesan's specialty.

Back-flipping to create more distance between the two, the rosette-haired kunoichi hastily unraveled the bandages from her wrist, mentally banishing her semicircular weapons in the process, to produce a few of her red, rose-petal shuriken to match the oncoming needles in a gridlock.

In these 'sneak-attack' routines, the green-eyed bookworm also realized that her projectile weaponry proficiency gradually got better. Her accuracy improved and the timing of her throws became shorter and more efficient.

Aside from the practicality of it all, Haruno Sakura was actually enjoying the training provided by her fellow colleague.

"Very good, Sakura-san!" Haku beamed with gusto. "I'm very proud of you!"

The wiz-kid from Team Seven gave her temporary mentor a bow of respect. "I ought to thank you, Haku-neesan, for coming to my aid when I needed it."

"A friend of Naruto-kun is a friend to me."

"I'm touched." Sakura gave the older girl an authentic smile for being so sweet.

"Wait, Sakura-san," she called out, now donning a serious look. "We're not out of the woods, just yet."

"…What do you have in mind?" Sakura curiously asked.

"How about we…add at least one ninjutsu to your arsenal…?"

"Ninjutsu?" She mentally listed off the several that she knew, which were Academy-ranked. "I already know a few of those…"

"Elemental ninjutsu, I mean," the elder kunoichi clarified.

Now, Sakura's mouth assumed an O-shape. "Oh…but, why that?"

"Shinobi," Haku explained, "by their namesake, have to endure, and if you dabble a bit into the many realms of jutsu, then you can utilize the tricks of the trade to persevere by any means. You don't have to be proficient; you just have to know enough in any discipline to survive."

Taking the logic into account, the cerise-locked girl was thrilled to learn. However, just one thing came up. "Wait…How do I find out my chakra nature, Haku-neesan?"

Said female ninja glanced around, fiddling around in the pockets her battle kimono provided and blushed in embarrassment when she came up empty. "Um…I seem to have forgotten some…chakra paper…"

Sakura gave her part-time tutor a flat look. "…Or did you run out?"

Haku anxiously smiled, scratching the back of her head.

Why did that make her recall the same thing Naruto did as a nervous tic?

XXXXXXXXXX

After a brief intermission, the Hyouton heiress came back, with Kakashi in tow.

Sakura's face was adorned with surprise. "Kakashi-sensei?"

She had seen Haku bob her head out of the corner of her vision. "I bumped into him on my way home."

The pink-haired genin narrowed her eyes, carefully gazing at the figure before them, before coming to a conclusion. Her eyes lit up. "He's just a clone of Kakashi-sensei…"

"Very perceptive, Sakura," the bunshin proudly remarked. "The current me is, well, out of the village for the moment, so, if you'll leave your message after the beep…"

Sakura's impatience began to spike while palming her face. "Kakashi-sensei, do you have any chakra paper on you, by chance?" She just wanted to find out her chakra nature, damn it! Was that so hard to ask?

The Copy Ninja duplicate blinked. "…I do."

The jade-eyed kunoichi perked up. "That's great! Tha—!"

"But," Kakashi's replica interrupted, clipping her gratitude as he took out the sheets, "it'll cost you."

She owlishly blinked. "What?"

The jester of a clone waved her off. "Ah, never mind. Here you go, Sakura, and I'm sorry for not finding you a tutor."

Ignoring her sensei's antics as she accepted them, Sakura shook her head. "I already found one, who was right here with us the entire time." She walked over and placed a hand on the older girl's shoulder.

The Kakashi doppelganger let loose a wistful sigh. "Ah, the wonders of girls bonding…kinky…"

The clone sped off in a Body Flicker right before Sakura had a chance to lunge at her perverted sensei…well, a copy of him, but still!

"Grr…" Sakura gritted her teeth in a snarl.

Haku then held up the rectangular sheets of paper that the younger girl dropped in her abrupt shift toward aggression. "Please, Sakura-san, let's just ignore him." She was also trying her best—and failing—to fight down the heat rising to her porcelain face.

"…Fine," the jade-eyed wiz-kid growled out, relenting on vengeance…for now. She held out her hand. Haku then passed the leaf of paper to her impromptu protégé.

The Shadow Blossom channeled some of her chakra into the paper, with nothing to show…

That was, until the paper started to shake. Then, suddenly, the paper registered the chakra nature in question.

The ice-mistress looked pensive at the result. "That's…interesting…"

It ironically fit the cherry blossom of Konohagakure…

XXXXXXXXXX

His muscles ached beyond protest. His mouth tried to produce saliva to moisten his parched throat, but to no avail. A dull throb in his skull kept him from the throes of unconsciousness.

_'I wonder if this is chakra exhaustion setting in…'_ the prostrate boy errantly mused.

Uchiha Sasuke rested on a low-lying plateau as he gathered his bearings, blinking out the dark spots creeping around his vision while recovering.

The past couple of weeks to him, for lack of a better word, was hell. He had seen it, witnessed it, and had the scars to prove it. He never knew how he managed to make it to the start of the third week before the final rounds, but here he was, through true grit and willpower.

He started out with strength conditioning, which proved to be more of a pain in the neck than anything. Kakashi had him scale up and down the rocky ledges to build up muscle and tone him to move on to the next step.

And then, along came the evasion training…where his teacher had thrown every single thing imaginable…from kunai…to shuriken…to a lead pipe…

Yes, that even included the kitchen sink. How the Copy Ninja managed to pull off that stunt baffled the Uchiha scion to no end, as well as questioning the man's sanity. He neither wanted to inquire nor wanted to find out.

_'Speak of the devil…'_ Sasuke craned his neck to see the silhouette blotting out the afternoon sun. The gravity-defying silver hair made him outwardly groan.

"Don't be like that, Sasuke," Kakashi mumbled over the recuperating teen. "How about we take a break and try something fun?"

The onyx-eyed avenger saw that gleam in the older ninja's eye. What was he planning? "I'm curious…" he carefully stated from his seated position. His statement was answered when Kakashi whipped out a pretty large scroll with many archaic paw-prints riddled all around the parchment. "What is that?" He closed his eyes to a mere squint, not just to limit the blinding sunlight, but to better discern the piece of parchment.

"For your efforts these past couple of weeks, I decided to reward you." He twirled the meter-and-a-half-long roll of rice paper like a baton. "This was found on that impounded barge that Gatou used to own."

"…You still didn't tell me what it is," Sasuke evenly remarked, wanting to not beat around the bush.

"I see you want to get to the point," Kakashi murmured with a sigh. "Very well, then…" He slowly opened the scroll to show to an intrigued genin as he stood up. He just saw a list of names flowing from right to left, with several blank spots available for a signature.

"…" The younger ninja blinked once…then twice…

"Well?" his mentor prompted.

"…It's a summoning contract…" the boy deadpanned.

"Right…" Kakashi drawled out. "But, it's a bit…special. It pertains to wildcats."

Once the words left the older shinobi's lips, the raven-haired rookie of the year met that with uneasiness, and looked to show his apparent disgust. His normally-slick hairstyle bristled a bit. "They aren't like Tora, are they?" he asked, holding up his hands to protect himself, almost as if the scroll was coated with a noxious odor or ready to jump out at him. _'That feline was the devil!'_

"Oh, no, not at all…" the ashen-haired jounin defended. "They're like the tigers you see prowling around Training Area Forty-Four…but a bit more unique, from what I discerned of them—lynxes, bobcats…the list goes on."

That caused the dark-haired teenager to think on the pros and cons of signing his blood to bond with these overgrown kittens. He also weighed the decision to sign from his early childhood visits to the outskirts of the Fire Country.

There were Denka and Hina, two ninbyou that resided in the Uchiha clan's abandoned supply base known as Sora-ku, left in the hands of a strange cat-lady who called herself Nekobaa, and her granddaughter, Tamaki. Alas, those trips seemed like an entire lifetime ago…

Nevertheless, Sasuke pondered over the notion on whether or not there was a pact between the Uchiha and this…Sakibou clan, who originally held the summoning scroll, as noted by its previous entrees.

If it meant being one step closer to restoring his clan to its former glory, then he would assume this grand undertaking, even if he had to fight the boss summon for dominance. "I'll try it out," he coolly responded after mulling over the perks. Then again, the unknown factor that permeated his mind boiled down to what their powers would entail.

"Okay," Kakashi said, clapping his hands against the wood supporting the summoning parchment. "I may not have the same style of technique as the Legendary Three, but I do know the hand seal sequence, since I've seen it done so many times with my Sharingan out." He gave the roll of paper to his talented charge. "Now, Sasuke, I need you to make yourself bleed and sign your name, with your fingertips smeared in blood as a 'seal' at the bottom, allowing you to summon the power of these wildcats. The hand seal sequence goes as follows: Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey, and Ram. Got that?"

The lone wolf of Team Seven did as he was told, completing the process and bandaging his left hand to stem the bleeding. He did not have the healing that Naruto possessed, sadly.

_'If only…'_ He shook his head. _'No…I have to get stronger on my own!'_ The seal on his neck faintly glowed before the throbbing subsided. "Here goes nothing…" Biting his right thumb, the skilled genius flew through the five-seal sequence with unparalleled fluidity and slammed his hand onto the hard rock upon which he stood.

**"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"**

A sealing array spiraled out in a web-shaped pattern on the rocky surface before smoke engulfed the smaller ninja. Sasuke stood back and batted back the cloud of vapor with flailing arms. When the smoke petered out into a light wisp, the genin kept his grin in check as he admired his handiwork.

A four-legged figure with a rather long tail emerged from the haze. The one defining trait that set it apart from normal wildlife was that the wildcat's pelt was black but riddled with red stripes.

Hazel-green eyes scanned around before setting his sights on the two humans who stood in front of him. His sweeping gaze felt like it passed right through them. Taking a whiff of the air, the essence of the blood used to summon him forced him to glare at the dark-haired kid.

The tiger-summon hummed before it spoke up, its voice clearly denoting its masculine gender…and its lack of amusement. **"From what I see after three decades, you are not of the Sakibou tribe. What is the meaning behind this profane transgression? And how did you stumble upon the Sakibou's birthright?"**

Uchiha Sasuke then let out his patented smirk. He started to like this, already. "Do the names Denka and Hina ring a bell to you?"

He could play Twenty Questions with this unique beast before him.

XXXXXXXXXX

Naruto played around with raw chakra in the palm of his hands, silently stewing in a quiet rage at the hands-off approach provided by his new instructor, who just left him to his devices by another waterfall located on the other side of the village.

What did he think of the super-perverted ninja, Jiraiya, who he childishly labeled 'Ero-sennin?'

Things did not pan out well upon first encounter. The bewhiskered genin openly assaulted the older ninja when he mentioned his name after some really freaky dance…

_"Yamato-sensei, why are we heading back to the onsen?" Naruto whined as Doshaburi started to pant from atop his head due to the rising heat._

_"We're going to meet your new teacher for the next couple of weeks, Naruto-kun," the Mokuton-infused ninja carefully responded, leaving it at just that. _'Leave it to Hokage-sama to just tell me that I'd find Jiraiya-sama where there are abundant women and equal amounts of skin…'

_"I'm not liking this vibe one bit, Sensei…"_

_"Neither am I…"_

_As they rounded the corner to the relaxing hot springs, the duo looked at a very disturbing sight…_

_A man well into middle age incessantly snickered under his husky breaths as he looked through a knothole in the wooden fencepost that severed the men's side from the women's._

_Once the man paused to jot down something on a notepad he had beside him, Naruto lost his cool. "Hey, old man! What the hell do you think you're doing?" he roared with a twinge of murderous intent._

_The long-haired individual heard the brash boy, but still did not turn to meet his gaze. "Pipe down, kid. I'm doing research, so why don't you just run along like a good, little boy?" the man with red lines down his cheeks distractedly murmured, giving the brat a dismissive wave of his hand._

_The bewhiskered genin snarled, showing off his elongated fangs. Then, a thought came to him. "I don't see why you have to peep at naked women through that notch in the fence, knowing they got magazines to satisfy your fetish, asshole!" he roared at the top of his lungs, which elicited shrieks, splashing water, and the wet pattering of feet on the other side of the enclosure._

_That left the geta-wearing shinobi, who had been hunched over in a crouch, to grumble at his ruined moment and stood up to face the rascal who messed up his…_

_Seeing the stern look from the blond-haired kid threw the older ninja for a loop. "Oh, it's you…" he noted, with hardly a hint of surprise, all the while keeping his emotions from spilling out._

_"Wait…you know me?" Confusion replaced the menacing look on Naruto's face._

_"I know and understand all," the kabuki-themed old man boomed as he whipped and flung his hair in a wild frenzy, "for I am the Village's Madness!" His arms struck out in obtuse angles, palms facing outward. "The wandering Toad Sage from Mount Myouboku! I have journeyed far and wide, and the conquests abroad scream my name in worship and awe at my awesome skills—on the battlefield and in the bedroom!" He wagged his eyebrows in a joking gesture._

_Naruto's face contorted into one of pure disgust at that._ 'Is this guy for real?'

_The self-proclaimed Toad Sage—in Naruto's opinion, anyway—shifted his posture as he clicked his wooden sandals against the stone walkway. "I am…the gallant Jiraiya-sama!"_

_The blond, at the mention of the man's name, felt his eyebrow pulse and twitch. "So…you're the infamous Jiraiya, huh?"_

_"Why, yes, I am!" Jiraiya of the Toads rumbled with fervor. "One of the Legend—" He stopped speaking when his fist met the knee of the boy who just now openly attacked him out of pure reflex. He grunted due to the force of the impact. "Whoa, there, kiddo! You got quite the power backed into your taijutsu…"_

_The blue-eyed jinchuuriki, initially angry and unknowingly dislodged his companion from his head, had shock written all over his face. _'This guy's _huge_!'

_Like tossing away a balled-up piece of paper, the Sage from Myoubokuzan haphazardly tossed the boy over his shoulder by his thigh. Without even looking in the boy's direction, he snootily added, "You're a few decades short of _ever _getting the drop on me, brat!"_

_Due to his ingrained training, the blond-haired genin deftly landed on his feet, blue eyes trying their best to burn a hole through the back of the man's skull. He then pointed for emphasis. "Hey, old man, don't look down on me! I'm gonna be Hokage someday, so you better recognize, chump!"_

_Jiraiya snorted, looking at the silent watcher of the scene. "Heh…When pigs fly…"_

_"Go to hell, pervert!"_

_"Correction: I'm a _super _pervert!" the older ninja proudly crowed with a huge grin on his face as he turned around._

_"That's nothing to be proud of! You really need to get a life!"_

_"Uh…Naruto-kun…" Yamato chimed in to stem the little shouting war. "…This is your new instructor, so you should learn how to play nice…" A somber shadow fell over the man's face when he gave Naruto 'the look.' "Do I make myself clear?"_

_"C-Crystal, sir!"_

_"Good…"_

_"I'll give you time to appeal to my interest," the middle-aged hermit explained to the boy, in complete business mode, "but, if you don't impress me, then you can forget about the training I have for you."_

Needless to say, given the nature of Ero-sennin, his new nickname for the old fart, he managed to use his Oiroke form to convince the nomadic sage to train the boy. However, he felt like there was more to the perverted hermit taking him in as an apprentice ninja than met the eye.

He wondered what the older man had in store for him in the last couple of weeks.

After giving the rundown on his abilities so far—minus the Phantom Flame, Hyouton and Mokuton, which his furry tenant advised to leave out for the time being—Jiraiya assessed him on his elemental arsenal, which caused him to inwardly grin and show off to his heart's content, leaving the man blinking a bit before he bobbed his head. On what, the blond could not tell, but the gleam in Ero-sennin's eyes told him that he must have found a diamond in the rough with him.

_"It feels like you've found your calling in ninjutsu, kid," Ero-sennin reasoned, a twinge of pride underneath the remark. "A bit wet behind the ears, but in due time, I can make you famous!" He snickered. "You could be just as great as the Yondaime!"_

_The blue-eyed ninja looked at him oddly, at the mention of his father. "You knew the Yondaime?"_

_"Of course! He was my prized student, after all!"_

Naruto must have done something to get that kind of high praise…from none other than his dad's teacher, no less. Kind of poignant, if you asked him, and how history seemed to repeat itself.

His retrospection on the past week's events screeched to a halt when he saw his tawny canine speed up in a flash of white light before barreling into the trunk of a tree, splintering it with relative ease and caused half of the wood to fall to the side.

_'How's that, Master Naruto?'_ Doshaburi asked for praise.

"You're doing great on the Tama Tosshin! Keep it up, buddy!"

The globule of energy hypnotically twirled around his palm, giving the blond shinobi some ideas on inventing a few new jutsu out of its mechanics, but, for the moment, he was fresh out. So far, from that mysterious sphere-like technique Kakashi-sensei had shown him, he just could not form enough power to completely shred a rubber ball, as per his initial mentor's suggestions in the scroll. With the third week nearing its end, Naruto felt that the progress moved along pretty quickly when his new sensei did not hover over him. _'I should have this stage down by the end of the week, if not the start of the last week before the final rounds…'_

"Hey, kid, what are you doing?"

Sensing (and hearing) his part-time instructor waltz up, he immediately canceled his chakra flow and stashed away the piece of parchment. "Just…experimenting, Ero-sennin…"

"Didn't take you for a mad scientist with chakra," Jiraiya pointed out as his geta softly clicked against the dirt.

Naruto stood on his feet and walked up to his approaching mentor. "Say, Ero-sennin, when are you going to show me some kick-ass ninjutsu? I'm starving for attention here!"

"I was just thinking about that, actually, on my way here," the older ninja answered by the seat of his pants in a half-truth.

"Well? What's the plan?" As per the norm, his impatience started to get the better of the blue-eyed demon vessel.

"Start by warming up. Battle a few of your clones while I fine-tune which jutsu I could teach you."

"You're just biding time, Ero-sennin!" the kid feverishly accused. "I bet you were off peeping again! What kind of sensei are you, huh?"

"The naughty kind!" he triumphantly beamed, getting the boy's hackles risen.

Naruto trembled in mounting anger before summoning a horde of his doppelgangers. He needed to burn off some steam, lest he go mad on account of a certain, wayward instructor.

XXXXXXXXXX

The village pariah heavily breathed as the last clone got destroyed with a very swift, wind-powered kick to the side of its temple. It took Naruto about a good four minutes to exterminate four hundred copies that had the same moves that he possessed under his belt. It felt a bit strange that, whenever he sparred with his replica, he got a reading on his progress; like he got to know himself better with each clone dispelling—their thought patterns, their plans of attack, and their strategies…

"Very good, Naruto," Jiraiya spoke up and clapped at a good show, fox kit yapping beside him in approval as well.

"You finally mentioned my name, Ero-sennin. Why's that?" he cautiously inquired.

_'Tipped my hand too early, huh?'_ The older man had to backpedal. "…I'll explain later," he cryptically commented while absentmindedly scratching Doshaburi behind the ears. "But, for now, how do you feel?"

Getting his breathing back to normal, the blue-eyed genin sat down beside the giant of a man. He rubbed at his cheeks. "I can't really describe it…" He saw the critical gaze from Ero-sennin through his peripheral vision, so he explained a bit more in detail. "I feel like, whenever they dispel, I get a sense of who I am when I'm fighting."

"Ah, so you know the other perk of the Kage Bunshin, then," Jiraiya pensively intoned. "Say, Naruto…"

"Yes, Ero-sensei?"

"So, it's Ero-sensei, now?" Jiraiya snorted. "The kind of respect I get for a man of great renown like me…"

"Hey, you said you spied on women for a living, so I thought it fitting, so, nyeh!" Naruto stuck out his tongue in a childish manner.

"Anyhow," the Legendary Ninja mumbled, "what makes you think you're Hokage material? It's not a job for those with dedication to the cause."

"I want to be the best Hokage so people can stop looking down on me and treating me like the common dirt they walk across every single day!" the blue-eyed Uzumaki reasoned while his voice picked up in speed and volume. "I want to be great and protect the things I cherish the most…and the people I hold dear to me!"

He heard the burly laugh from the Toad Hermit. "That's not a very good reason, at all, kid!"

Naruto's cheeks puffed up in embarrassment. "Why are you laughing at me?"

He waved off the kid as he got his chuckles under control. "No, I mean, the way you approach your ascent to the Hokage mantle is flawed, my boy. Selfish, even. Sure, you'd have a battalion of ninja under your command, but you have to ask yourself this: have you mastered yourself to the point that you can be able to separate your personal and public life? Will you willingly put the people you hold close in the line of fire? On that same note, have you fully tapped into your true power? Would that be where you truly shine?" He saw the kid quietly think on that as his eyes—and ears—drooped a bit. "Mastering others makes you powerful, no doubt, but mastering yourself makes you fearless and resolute in guiding your decisions regarding Konohagakure's safety."

"I don't understand you, at all, Ero-sennin," Naruto muttered, feeling rather disheartened. "It's like you keep spouting random things that don't make much sense."

"You just have to get a broader sense of seeing the world in the big picture, Naruto," Jiraiya elaborated. "Wisdom comes with age and experience. If you really think about it, Naruto, despite your upbringing, your logic surrounding the Hokage seat is self-centered and of the 'all about me' mentality, which should not be the case when it comes to having power. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Remember that well…" A dark look crept across the older man's features, instantly recalling his teammate who fell from grace and descended into darkness.

"Ero-sensei?" He felt uneasy when the older ninja had a quickly passing downcast look on his face, making him seem older.

He then frowned, clearing away the errors of past judgment. "During your clone-spamming battle," Naruto laughed at how he phrased it, "I saw you hesitating on using your ice ninjutsu." He saw the brat jump in surprise. "Same goes with using wood, too, but Sarutobi-sensei banned you from using it."

The bewhiskered genin sputtered. "Y-You knew all along?"

A confident smirk crept along Jiraiya's weathered features. "What kind of buffoon do you take me for, boy? I told you before. I know _and_ understand all!"

"I guess you know about…the fur-ball, right?" Naruto asked in a very small voice.

"I do…" the man sadly answered.

"…You don't hate me, do you?"

A large hand clapped on the boy's shoulder for comfort. "Not at all, kiddo! Hell, were it not for some special people in my life that are linked to you, I wouldn't have been that great in the sealing arts."

The younger of the two felt reassured. "Thanks, Jiraiya-sensei. And yes, I'll use that, but only when you show that you're competent enough to train me!"

The Densetsu no Nin grumbled and harrumphed, "You're such a brat, kid."

"I am to be a pain in the ass!" A sunny smile radiated from the blond's face.

"If you want to be a pain, then I'll gladly show you two jutsu that I want you to learn…hehe…"

He saw the sinister look befitting a prankster. Chills rankled his spine, warning him to run away from this guy…and fast! _'Something tells me I'll be hurting pretty badly…'_

**"I'm loving this fellow pervert, already…"**

_'Not now, Fuzz-Butt!"_

XXXXXXXXXX

The time was around five in the evening, on the twenty-eighth of July—ten days before the start of the final rounds, and Naruto walked off the dull cramps in his joints from another rigorous training day with Ero-sennin. The goal, this time, entailed defeating a replica of the ridiculously powerful ninja.

Long story short, the blond had his ass handed to him on a silver platter…with a garnish.

"Cheer up, Master Naruto," Doshaburi spoke up after an uneasy silence. "You almost had him, though!"

"What are you, nuts? I got creamed, Dosha-chan!" Naruto waved around his hands in defeat. Did he greatly underestimate Orochimaru in that regard? He sparred with his teammate, for crying out loud! Were the Sannin truly the stuff of myth and lore, despite their…glaringly obvious vices?

_'Well, one likes to swap skin, and the other likes to cop a feel at skin every day of the week…'_

His musings skidded to a halt as he heard sounds of a confrontation. His pointy ears twitched. "Do you hear that?"

His ocher-toned fox kit whiffed the air and his muzzle scrunched up. "I smell blood, M-Master…"

"Let's go!" The fox-boy duo dashed down the dusty alley and up on top of a low-lying roof, following the sounds of the fighting. When they stopped to see what was going on, Naruto's blood began to boil.

A kunoichi with camouflage khaki pants became the victim on the receiving end of a strong fist from one of her own comrades.

As she slid to a stop in the dirt road, her masked assailant talked down to her in a condescending tone. "You worthless piece of scum! You failed spectacularly in your debut fights. Feh, no wonder Orochimaru-sama kept you in the dark all this time…"

Naruto gnashed together his teeth in revulsion. "To sink so low as to attack your own comrade. He's lower than scum!" he sneered under his breath from their vantage point.

**"I don't think this is a wise decision, boy,"** the fox in his gut advised in his initial judgment.** "To involve yourself in the affairs of another village would risk an international incident."**

_'He's probably a Chuunin, but I should always assume that he's a threat, regardless,'_ Naruto reasoned to himself more than anything, recalling Jiraiya's word to the wise. _'I guess it's time to save the damsel in distress…'_

**"If you'd make a career out of it, then I'm okay with that!"** The Kyuubi showed off his white fangs in a grotesque smile that would have left little kids in tears.

_'Oh, you…'_ The boy rolled his eyes before rounding on his furry companion. "Dosha-chan, stay up top for standby. If things go south, then alert the ANBU, okay?"

"G-Got it, Master…"

As the blond crept down the gutter and behind the occupied Oto-ninja, he realized that his odd string of luck came into play, for the ski-masked man was not very aware of his environs. The unidentified Oto-nin fell to a firm knife-edged chop across a nerve in his neck.

The blue-eyed shinobi shook his head and sighed. "And I thought this guy was a pro…"

**"Kind of a letdown, if you ask me. I'd give him…an F for effort."**

_'You're a tough critic to appease,' _Naruto sardonically thought. He then turned his eyes on the bloody mess of a kunoichi. Aside from the swollen bruises across her skin, he came across her defining feature—long, ebony hair that was at least knee-length. _'I've seen her before…'_ After seeing her squirm, he observed more than a few sets of footprints that all converged on where the near-unconscious girl lay.

"You're that Tsuchi Kin character, aren't you?" he asked, trying to get her to speak. "The same bitch who got her clock cleaned by Fuzzy-Brows in the prelims?"

"Why…why did you…come?" she asked, straining to keep awake.

"…Let's just say I have a soft spot for the ladies, even though your mouth probably got you in trouble on more than one occasion," Naruto offhandedly remarked, thumbing the notch on his kunai. "So, looks to me that your so-called friends tenderized you like meat."

"Go…back…" she whimpered.

"Huh? Couldn't hear you."

"I said go back!" Kin shouted, coughing a bit after the outburst. "You have no business with—!" Words struggled to come out of her mouth as her vision began to swim into the darkness.

"Damn…" The bewhiskered ninja walked up to her and checked her pulse. "She's just out of it, for now." He hoisted the smaller girl on his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, intending to carry her back to his apartment where he presumed would be the last spot anyone would check to find one of their own, now about to go missing.

**"I sense wariness within you, Naruto."** The Nine-Tails got better at reading the color of the kid's emotions.

_'I'm not doing this out of pity…'_ he rationalized.

**"I think you're deluding yourself…"**

_'Okay, maybe I am, but I'm going to get her to speak on why they did this to her.'_

**"Your selfless act of putting yourself on the chopping block amuses me so."** The off-kilter tenant drummed his nails across the metallic floor of his mindscape. **"You may be allowing a potential threat to sleep near you and Haku-chan."** He smirked. **"You play a dangerous game, my dear warden."**

_'Action, now. Consequences, later.'_

XXXXXXXXXX

The pungent odors of a smelling-salt caused Kin's nose to crinkle in disgust as her head turned away. One of her eyes fluttered open while the other remained half-closed due to the puffiness around it. She gazed around at the scenery.

_'Green-colored walls, small dimensions…I'm in a flat or an apartment complex…'_ she calculated in her mind. Her musings were cut short when a sound akin to clearing someone's throat registered in her ears. _'There's someone in the room! Could it be an enemy?'_ Kin reached down to her thigh to—

"Ah, you're awake. Good. And you can forget about your weaponry. I, personally, had to put away your little needles. You could poke an eye out with them."

Frantic eyes dreadfully rotated and met the sky-blue irises with slit pupils—the source of the happy-go-lucky phrasing. "You!" she jeered.

"Hi to you, too," he all but deadpanned.

Kin started to get outraged by this boy's blasé attitude. "I didn't ask you to save me!" she bellowed as she tried to get up out of his bed. She distractedly wondered how come the blond ninja did not tie her up with ropes, twine or ninja wire.

The blond boy pursed his lips. "I didn't do it to save you, Kin-chan."

"You better not call me that!" she growled. "We're not friends!"

The kid just shrugged. "So, Kin-chan, as I was saying before I was _rudely_ interrupted…" He let her snarl to let off some steam. "…I didn't save you, just because. I did it so I can get some info out of you. Who are you working for, and what ties do you have to a guy named Orochimaru?"

The mention of the snake-charmer caused the dark-eyed girl to wince a bit. "He's our master…and that's all you're getting from me!"

Disbelief crawled all over the boy's facial features. "I still don't believe you, unless you really are that low of a peon for him to not care about you, at all…"

"How dare you speak ill of Orochimaru-sama!" she venomously spat.

Naruto was not going to put up with a smart-mouthed hussy in his presence. He wound up his back hand and struck home right on Kin's damaged cheek, eliciting a drawn out groan in agony.

"Quiet, you!" he boomed, eyes losing all sense of warmth, leaving behind cold fury. "From what I saw, you just got beat down like a dog. The least I could get would be a 'thank-you,' but _no_, I don't even get that!" Most men in Naruto's situation would have easily tried to solicit favors out of a captive kunoichi for their sick kicks. The blond demon vessel proved far above that.

The door to his bedroom creaked open, revealing his roommate with a tray, a kettle, and a couple of cups. "I…brought some tea for you, Naruto-kun…" The smile from her face fell at the sight of another girl in her savior's bed. _'What is the meaning of this?'_

"Sit it by the bed, Haku-chan…" he subtly ordered the older girl to do so. Keeping a close eye on their not-really-captive hostage, Naruto summoned a shadow clone. "You, keep an eye on her, and if she moves, you know what to do." The identical replica grimly nodded, the signal already given.

As Haku went over to the nightstand, her eyes narrowed with caution as she saw the musical eighth note engraved on the other kunoichi's headband, which now neatly rested on it, its cloth wrapping delicately tucked in from both sides to support the metal plate. She then ambled with the real Naruto past the threshold to his bedroom, and out into the foyer.

"She's from Otogakure…" the ice-mistress mumbled in a whisper as her blond hero kept a vigilant eye on the now-closed door.

"Yeah," he confirmed, keeping his voice low so that Kin could not hear them, either, "but I think she's signed on to the Hidden Sound for the wrong reasons…"

"Oto was a recently developed hidden village…" Haku rubbed her forehead in thought. "I want to suspect that it's made up of defectors and other runaway shinobi…or those of weak will and yearned for a sense of belonging."

"I don't like the fact of people blindly following someone like a lost puppy or a herd of sheep…" Noting who stood in front of him, he amended, "I mean, no offense to you, Haku-chan. Your circumstances were a bit more…peculiar."

"Yeah…" she sadly intoned while rubbing at her arm.

Naruto easily read the body language from his female companion. "Why do you seem uneasy with her in our home? It's not like I like her, or anything. I'm just doing my job." He held her hands in his to soothe her subtle jealousy. "Look, Haku-chan, you and I share a bond that no one can break. We both know how it was to feel unappreciated and undervalued before we found the people who accepted us for who we are. Learn to have a little faith in what I do."

Brown eyes averted blue. She did have her complete trust in her savior, but she had no idea on how to voice that in any way possible. "I…"

"Hm?"

"Thank you…Naruto-kun…"

"Hey, don't sweat it!" he chirped with a foxy smile. "Now, since my clone didn't dispel, I assume she's staying put." To confirm his suspicion, much to his surprise, the clone turned around, shrugged and moved out of the way, to see the battered girl fast asleep and resting peacefully.

One thought came to the blond's mind, which then came out as a frustrated grumble. "Oh, great. Now, where am I gonna sleep?" He heard his friend thickly swallow. "It's getting late." He peered at the alarm clock by his bed, on the nightstand. "Nine-thirty? It's almost bedtime, damn it!"

"Um…" Blue eyes focused on the older girl's face, which looked just as innocent, with a dash of pink lining her cheeks. "…You could…sleep with me, Naruto-kun…"

The only boy in the room—minus the vulpine who scratched at the floor in the dining room—owlishly blinked. Did he just hear that correctly? "You…and me…in bed…together…?" He blinked a few more times before rubbing his scalp and let out a shaky breath.

"We'll be clothed, and we're all friends, right?" the Hyouton heiress supplied as a supporting argument to the situation at hand, rather than a con. That still did not ease off the blush, though.

"I haven't done this with anyone, actually," Naruto muttered.

"Go, boss!" his clone shouted with a thumb up in the patented Nice Guy™ pose.

"Shush!" he hissed in a low voice. "You'll wake up Kin-chan over there!"

"Oh, sorry," it sheepishly remarked. "My bad, boss…"

"Anyway," the bewhiskered ninja spoke up, face feeling a bit warm, "sure, I'll sleep with you. Sure as hell beats sleeping on the couch."

The fox did not object to the notion, either. **_'Cha-ching!'_**

He turned to his clone. "How long do you have left before you run out of chakra?"

The Naruto bunshin blinked. "About a few more hours…Why?"

"I might have to dispel you and summon a new one with a bit more energy in it to stay awake and keep an eye on Kin-chan, in case she tries anything funny while we're sleeping. Maybe two, if push comes to shove."

"Add another," his clone suggested without a hint of thought. "I can use some company."

"Man…this is just so weird."

"What?"

The authentic genin shook his head. "I'm talking to myself. I must be going nuts." That drew forth an awkward chuckle from his doppelganger.

"I guess we'll have tea for another day." Haku's lips twitched into a frown before assuming a thin line. She advanced to the nightstand to pick up the cold brew and exited Naruto's bedroom. "I'll be waiting in my bedroom, Naruto-kun, when you're ready."

_'Why does this still feel like a really awkward situation?'_ The blue-eyed shinobi had an unreadable look on his face as he conjured another copy. "You two know your jobs. Alternate sleep between the two of you to slow down the chakra drain. Got it?"

"Should we secure her to the bed as a hostage?" the fresh clone asked.

"Yeah, just like that one movie!" the other added.

The second clone appeared thoughtful, hand on his chin. "I wonder if chains and whips excite her…"

"Guys," Naruto grated out, "focus…"

Sensing the grave tone the original put forth, both replicas snapped to attention. "Yes, sir!"

"Good. I guess, to make us feel less ill at ease, go ahead and restrain her with a spool of ninja wire, but don't go overboard, okay?" The newly created clone's grin enveloped the lower half of his face. _'…I still wonder about these sentient and independently thinking clones…'_

Knowing that the clones went to occupy themselves, Naruto took the time to quickly disrobe and put on his pajamas, along with his odd-looking nightcap. When the duplicates returned, he tiptoed off as they worked on binding the Oto-kunoichi. Once he reached the threshold of Haku's door, his heart started to race. It was the first time he shared a bed with anyone…let alone, a member of the opposite sex.

_'But…why am I so nervous, though?'_ He hesitated when his hand touched the doorknob. _'Haku-chan's my friend, and I said I wouldn't do anything that'd make her uncomfortable…'_ He put his word and his nindou at stake. Eyes burning in resolution, he turned the handle and proceeded into his fellow companion's room.

In contrast to the boy's green-tinted walls in his bedroom, the ice-conjuring kunoichi painted hers with a shade of purple…or mauve…or something close to that.

Speaking of the warmhearted kunoichi, she looked up at her personal hero, eyes lidded from exhaustion.

Naruto gulped. He did not expect to see Haku-chan waiting for him like that—body turned to the side, showing off her delicate curves under the sheets…

So sultry…so seductive without her knowing it…so tempting to just let his inhibitions go to satiate his teenage hormones…

_'Get a grip, Naruto!'_ he chastised himself for even considering those lustful desires. _'Remember your ninja way!'_

"Are you coming?" she innocently asked.

Naruto closed his eyes and inwardly groaned. _'Wrong word choice, Haku-chan…'_ He walked over and slid in, flat on his back and sheets up to his chin. His digits tightly clenched the sheets. "Hm…It's pretty comfortable…"

"I got it from a stipend for a few errands around the Hokage Tower," Haku mentioned.

"That's nice…" the blond said with an indescribable tone.

"Is something bothering you?" Her breath tickled his cheeks.

He tried his hardest to keep down his little soldier. "N-No, everything's A-okay!" he squeaked.

**"You're duping yourself again, boy…"**

The blond inhaled and sharply exhaled. _'Not you, too, fox…'_

"All right…" Haku paused before realizing something. "Oh, just to let you know, Naruto-kun, I tend to get a bit…clingy whenever I sleep in the bed." She gave her savior a kindred smile. "I often wake up with a pillow nestled between my arms and legs…"

Apparently, someone wanted to come out and play…and not in the way Naruto wanted. _'Oh, by the gods, help me!'_

"Do you mind if I snuggle with you, Naruto-kun?" she demurely inquired, causing Naruto to slightly choke and cough on his own spit.

"Uh…sure…" He turned over on the other side, his back facing his female friend. He did not want her to bear witness to…his personal dilemma.

When he felt soft, warm pillows lay against his back, and delicate hands easing around his waist, Naruto's other head was not going back down for the rest of the night.

_'Damn it all…'_

**"Come on, boy…Just the tip…"** the carmine demon whined.

_'Go…to hell…Fuzz-Butt!'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Cerulean eyes the color of the sky blankly stared at a pair of pupil-less, white Byakugan the hue of fresh snow.

Uzumaki Naruto uncomfortably sat across from a neutral-faced Hyuuga Hiashi, twenty-eighth clan head of the Main Branch Hyuuga clan, in his study within the clan complex.

He had been summoned to his door pretty early in the morning by a Hyuuga messenger, denoting the time and place of the meeting. Now, here he sat, on a rather uncomfortable tatami mat, as the two had a silent war of chicken, waiting for the other set of eyes to either blink or look away.

Silence just was not Naruto's thing. "You wanted to speak with me, personally, Hiashi-sama?" he asked with the utmost politeness. He felt it prudent to keep matters maintained on a professional level of decorum, for the clan head before him carried a great amount of political weight. To slight him would be tantamount to social suicide.

"Yes," the older man answered, his tone of voice even—befitting a noble of his stature. "I wanted to speak with you in regard to my daughter…"

"Hinata-chan? Is something wrong with her?" he queried, worry seeping through his questions.

"Yes, and no, nothing is wrong with her," Hiashi allayed, taking note that it relaxed the boy. "She's recovering well, actually."

The blond sighed in relief. "Thank goodness…"

"You've taken a liking to my elder daughter, I presume?" A delicate eyebrow quirked in amusement, even though his face remained impassive.

He shrugged his shoulders. "She's got a strong heart, Hiashi-sama," he commented with unabashed pride. "She's made a lot of strides to get where she is now."

"I see…" The Hyuuga patriarch then blinked once. "…and I seem to have lost at our little 'blinking' game, huh?"

The blue-eyed shinobi just blinked soon after and chuckled. "I didn't know you had a funny bone in your body, sir."

"Not many people do." He had to uphold a dignified poise that associated with the title of clan head. "However, I feel that I am digressing." His eyes then turned sharp and calculating. "Did you teach Hinata unorthodox ninjutsu?"

_'Whoa…Turned the tables on me at the drop of a conical hat, eh?'_ Naruto cleared his throat. "Well, yes, and I do have my reasons for it." Slowly, he drummed up his list. "Did it not state in the common guidelines that a ninja must delve into the branch arts of techniques? That includes ninjutsu and genjutsu, which extend beyond taijutsu. Relying too much on taijutsu will leave you more exposed, in a sense."

"We have special techniques through our Gentle Fist style that covers variable ranges," Hiashi smoothly countered.

"Hiashi-sama, if I may?"

"Acknowledged, Uzumaki-san."

"I know that you're showing tough love to your clan," Naruto observed, "but that doesn't mean tearing down Hinata-chan's already fragile self-confidence. I would consider not taking advantage of having a family, unlike me, who was born with nobody."

"Watch your tongue, Uzumaki-san," the clan head warned. The boy started to slide into familiar—and really upsetting—territory with the kid's train of thought.

"If I were you, I'd value my family, for they can be taken away in the blink of an eye…in a heartbeat…"

That statement felt like the wound on Hiashi's heart reopened. However, on the surface, he flawlessly hid away the pain. "While you may believe that, Uzumaki-san, sometimes, you can't protect all of them," he countered. "All that you hold dear…may one day be taken from you, and you have to steel yourself for when that comes to pass, in order to not break if tragedy hits close to home." It went both ways when he said it like that; mostly out of reassurance with regard to his twin brother's sacrifice despite his wishes. He was willing to lay down his life, but Hizashi chose a different path, leaving Hiashi out of options beyond his control.

With his tight response, Naruto mentally grimaced at how he stomped on uneasy ground with the clan head. "I…apologize, Hiashi-sama." He looked down at his lap. "I didn't meant to bring up a sensitive topic. I spoke out of turn."

"Uzumaki-san, you know not of the weight of hard decisions. On rare occasions, the elements work against you to keep you secure, despite your volition to involve yourself. Consider them blessings and move onward." He let loose a shallow, but carefully controlled, huff.

The blue-eyed shinobi warred within himself for a few seconds. _'I'm running dry, here, fox. What do you think? You read a human's body language better than we can!'_

**"I feel that he's not ready to face reality, just yet. He's saving face to keep the status quo,"** the Kyuubi reasoned, keeping close eyes on how the Byakugan-wielder carried himself. **"There's more to this than what he lets on…or has revealed."**

"Is that all you have for me, Hiashi-sama?" Naruto questioned, yearning to leave the stuffy office.

"…Yes, Uzumaki-san. You may go…" He started to jot down some characters on a calligraphy scroll.

The bewhiskered blond stood up and headed to the shouji leading out before stopping. "Hiashi-sama…"

"Yes?" he curiously asked.

"If you don't have it in your heart to change the clan by saving face," he then turned to stare eye-to-eye with him, sky-blue irises glowing in power and strength of character, "then I will carry the torch when I become Hokage." He let loose one of his vulpine grins. "What is a boat without a wind in its sail? It's stuck on shore or at sea." He hinted, just enough, toward the clan leading to stagnation that the clan head immediately caught the reference. What he did not relay, on the other hand, was to completely change what has been established as the norm, but merely finding a way to provide some flexibility in the clan repertoire…in addition to the ingrained philosophy that permeated the dysfunctional family. "Now, I need to see Hinata-chan before I meet up with Ero—I mean, my temporary teacher at noon. It was nice talking with you, Hiashi-sama, and…thanks, I guess, for being cordial with me, the village's ruffian."

Once the troublesome blond left his presence to see his elder daughter, Hiashi heaved a long sigh, dropping his formal ink brush back into the canister of the charcoal-based substance, motivation to practice character-writing chucked out of his mind. How did the Uzumaki boy manage to push the right buttons to irritate him?

_'Just like Kushina-dono…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

"You know, Kin-chan, you can always go, and we can forget this whole ordeal ever happened," Naruto noted as he looked at the unwanted guest in his room, putting out his new attire for the Chuunin finals tomorrow.

The Oto-kunoichi hugged her knees and propped her chin on them. She was told she was not a prisoner, since she hardly knew anything, and was told to go several times before, but, for some strange reason, the long-haired brunette decided to stick around, much to Haku's slight annoyance. "I'm actually liking it here, to be honest…"

The blond flapped his red muscle shirt to rid it of wrinkles. "I wouldn't be surprised that your village has a search party for you. What about your teammate? What was his name? The mummy-looking guy?"

A dark look burst onto Kin's face. "Dosu's dead…"

That gave the boy cause for concern. "Really?"

"Yeah…" she spoke in a small voice, black eyes downcast. "He thought he could try to take Gaara's place and fight your teammate in the final rounds, even though he already washed out. He did it out of personal pride…and revenge for killing Zaku in the preliminaries."

The blond ninja strung up his midnight-blue-toned battle coat with an available coat hanger. "Well, he lost, fair and square. It's a shame he had to go out like that," he callously mentioned, testing out the black armor padding for his shins and arms.

The fourteen-year-old female ninja glanced at her hitai-ate on the nightstand. "Unlike in Konoha, Oto-ninja are cutthroat and care little about team dynamics…just so long as we get the mission completed."

_'The blood-red muscle shirt…check. Wild-child battle coat with red flames on the bottom hem…check. Shin greaves and arm guards are secure, and the dark-blue pants have no tears in them.'_ The pointy-eared genin hummed as he realized that his new outfit was ready to go. "Hey, Haku-chan, do you think I should have gotten some kind of chest protection?"

"It wouldn't have hurt," Haku answered while seated near the windowsill, checking her cache of senbon.

"…You use senbon, too?"

"Why, yes, I do," the slightly older kunoichi tightly replied. "I still don't trust you being here, Kin-san."

"Girls, as long as you're under _my_ roof, let's all try to get along," the only male human in the room snipped. "We'll figure this out once the final rounds are over."

He had a long night ahead of him…as well as explaining his situation to the higher-ups. _'I hope I don't get the book thrown at me…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Yamanaka Inoichi worked diligently at Konoha Hospital for the past several days, trying his best to probe the unconscious shinobi's mind. His incorporeal representation in the younger ninja's mind wandered through all kinds of doors, leading to Hayate's most notable memories.

He should have skipped over the red-tinted door, for he kind of did not want to see him and Yuugao go at it like rabbits.

At any rate, he had to peel through the near-dead ninja's head like an onion to get to the deep-rooted traumatic experiences, and the most recent one felt like it had been on repeat when he opened that pathway.

After getting a crystal-clear image from his mind's eye leading up to Hayate's comatose state, Inoichi quickly opened up his own orbs in startling revelation.

There was a traitor amidst the Hidden Leaf Village; someone who stepped on the foundations of their homeland; someone who went against the very principles their forefathers worked hard to strive for, achieve, and maintain.

"This is blasphemy…" the blond-haired shinobi muttered, voice picking up in volume as he tried to wrap his head around the insanity of it all. "This is madness!" He dashed out of the east wing of the hospital to relay the data to the intelligence corps.

It was an open act of war, waiting to happen…

…and why did he get the urge to just…kick someone in the chest right off the Hokage Rock Monument?

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N:** And…cut! I think that should cover the entire one-month reprieve in its entirety. Kind of mind-boggling and humbling when you see it on a Word document. Anyway, some things pertaining to canon had gotten a nod in their direction, but overall, there are going to be gradual shifts that will diverge a bit from the original storyline. But, fear not; it won't stray too far out of left field. I'll still keep the story as compliant to canon in Part One as I will allow, but then again, what point would there be if I stuck to what was already written? That's rhetorical, so, please, don't answer.

As per the norm, I'd like to give credit to **weixuan18**, **Arashi the Solar Phoenix**, and **EliadS** for their kind words and suggestions for sculpting the direction of this bridge chapter, with my Muse steering me on a wild ride in the process. One wanted to kick the other for the first part of Naruto's chakra-training exercise, but I decided to run damage control and squash it before it got bigger than that. :P

**In this chapter, there are a whopping _five_ Easter eggs. Yes, you read that right. See if you can spot them, and I'll give you acknowledgments in the next chapter, okay? You'll get credit for at least listing two. Some are obscure; others, blatantly obvious. For those who can pinpoint all five, you deserve something special. I'll figure out that one when I get to that bridge to burn…er, cross over.**

With that noted, time to run the list of those who got the reference from last chapter, which was, in fact, a slight jab at the Twilight saga. Those who answered correctly were: **Daniel Lynx, Rena the pirate jedi wizard, Tempest of Reach**

No omake this time around. If anything, I'll probably throw in a couple in the next chapter, since this one kind of spiraled out of control. Sorry if you're a bit put off by the length…or if you had to read this in more than one sitting. Either way, I hope you all enjoyed it. I know I enjoyed writing it. The monstrous length proves that, already. That's for sure. :D

So, **_once again_**, I ask that you leave a review if you have read it. Let me know what you think. Favorite it, tell your friends, whatever. I'm trying to grow here.

Side Note: I'd also like to take this time to personally apologize to anyone who has ever been offended by what I have written to you, whether it was through a review reply, or a PM. I didn't mean to come off as snarky. Then again, that was three years ago, back when I was in college. I've mellowed out since then (I'm tamer; I swear I don't bite), and I'd like to bury the hatchet with some of you—especially to the ones who tried to give me criticism, only to end up rebuking you and 'talking down' to you, causing you to not review, anymore. Those weren't my intentions. Consider this my olive branch/clean slate approach from here on out, all right?

In addition (for those who are dying to use my techniques for your own story), if you would like to use some of the techniques I have crafted for this fic (or any fic hereafter, really), then you may do so, but on certain conditions:

**One: I have an entitled right to know which jutsu you are going to use, since I'm the creator of them. _Notify me by PM, e-mail, or instant messenger, please._**

**Two: Credit must go to me. You cannot, under any circumstances, claim them as your own.**

**Three: Since I created the jutsu, you cannot give someone else the okay to utilize my techniques, under any circumstances. This rule should be an automatic given.**

**Four: You cannot use my summoning contracts due to the amount of research and balance I've put into them. I have my personal reasons regarding them, anyhow.**

And, on that note, I will end it here, so, show me some love with a review, and I'll see you the next time I update. Enjoy your day (or night, depending on your time zone)! Later!

_The Chuunin Selection Examinations final rounds have come! What lies in wait for our chuunin-hopefuls, even though outside forces converge on Konohagakure? Stay tuned to find out!_

_Jikai (Next time…), on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Looming Shadows: The Creeping Limit_

**Romaji/Jutsu Guide**

**Youjutsu**: literally, "dark arts," but roughly translates to "black magic"

**Ten no Juin**: Cursed Seal of Heaven

**Tokujou**: abbreviated term for Toku(betsu) Jou(nin), or a Special Elite Ninja

**Densetsu no Nin**: "Legendary Ninja," or, literally, "Ninja of Tradition/Folklore/Legend"

**Uchi-chan**: "Inner," which is Sakura's doting nickname to her Inner Will

**Youjutsu: Kage Hakobi (Dark Art: Shadow Stride)**: D-rank supplementary hijutsu; user is able to teleport through the **Shadow Universe** (created)

**Soto-chan**: "Outer," which is Inner Sakura's retaliatory moniker for the authentic Haruno

**Kage Gen'ei**: Shadow Phantom; an entity that resides from the World of Shadows

**Raiton: Shinkei Douyou no Jutsu (Lightning Release: Nerve Disturbance Technique)**: D-rank offensive/supplementary close-range ninjutsu; user shoots out a weak static charge to make the target's nerves to go haywire or render the target unconscious (created)

**Suiton: Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Clone Technique)**: C-rank supplementary ninjutsu: allows the user to create clones out of water; like the other solid clone techniques, the clones can be used to perform tasks the user is unable or unwilling to do at a limited range and will revert back to water when struck with enough critical blows (Narutopedia)

**Doton Kage Bunshin (Earth Release Shadow Clone)**: B-rank offensive/defensive/supplementary ninjutsu; this technique creates a shadow clone made of mud of the user; since it is comprised of gooey mud, it can continue to mold and reform its original shape, unless it runs out of chakra, which it then turns to a pile of muck to hold an opponent in place (Narutopedia)

**Suiton Kage Bunshin (Water Release Shadow Clone)**: B-rank offensive/defensive/supplementary ninjutsu; similar in model to the **Doton Kage Bunshin (Earth Release Shadow Clone)**, this technique creates a solid copy of the user, but instead of the earth-element being integrated within the matrices of the doppelganger, it is filled with the water-element, instead; upon its destruction, this special-element clone bursts into a violent gush of water (semi-creation)

**Kuroake**: literally, "Black Dawn," and is the name of Sakura's special summoning pet/familiar

**Youjutsu Kuchiyose: Kage Hinba (Dark Art Summoning: Shadow Mare)**: B-rank offensive/defensive/supplementary hijutsu; via special blood pact, the user summons a spirit familiar from the Shadow Universe; the animal can be dispelled by user's will alone or if the user is rendered unconscious; otherwise, it can last longer than most summoned monsters into battle (created)

**Suiton: Karyuu no Jutsu (Water Release: Swirling Current Technique)**: High C-rank close- to mid-range ninjutsu; user blasts the foe with a spiraling water cannon that carries with it the power of a locomotive; this jutsu can be created around a water source or from the user's mouth, if need be (created)

**Suiton: Kyuusui no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Absorption Technique)**: D-rank supplementary ninjutsu; user drains fresh groundwater from the earth, water from a local body of water, or water vapor in the atmosphere; useful for finding water sources when on prolonged trips or for fueling other Suiton ninjutsu (created)

**Doton: Daichi Kobu no Jutsu (Earth Release: Vast Land Swelling Technique)**: Low C-rank offensive close- to mid-range ninjutsu; with the aid of earth-based chakra, the user can "move" the earth in any direction at will to simply block or strike an opponent (created)

**Doton: Gansou no Jutsu (Earth Release: Rock Formation Technique)**: Mid C-rank defensive close-range ninjutsu; user creates a dome of hardened earth to block incoming projectiles (created)

**Doton: Doryuu Jouheki (Earth Release: Earth Flow Rampart)**: B-rank defensive short- to mid-range ninjutsu; this technique creates a giant parapet beneath the user's feet, by shaping the ground and increasing the amount of earth with chakra; depending on what the user imagines, the shape of the rampart can be anything from level ground to a steep, needle-like mountain; the user may need to force down his chakra consumption if he or she increases the volume of earth too much (Narutopedia)

**Suiton: Takitsubo no Jutsu (Water Release: Waterfall Basin Technique)**: C-rank offensive/supplementary multiple-range ninjutsu; a technique which creates a waterfall by developing spring water in a place without water veins and manipulating the resulting water current to form a wave; since it drastically alters the environment, this technique can be used to hide the user's presence from the enemy through confusion; as long as the user continues to send in chakra to this jutsu, the width of the water source, waterfall, and basin can be expanded (Narutopedia)

**Ninbyou**: literally, "ninja cats" or "ninja felines"

**Sora-ku**: "Sky Ward"; the abandoned supply base where the near-extinct Uchiha clan stored munitions and equipment

**Nekobaa**: "Grandma Cat"

**Kitsune no Hijutsu: Tama Tosshin (Vulpine Secret Technique: Spirit Rush)**: unknown rank close-range hijutsu for vulpine-class animals; user charges dead-ahead, encased in bright, crimson light; hits target about 85 percent of the time, due to its tunnel vision effect (created)


	19. Looming Shadows! The Creeping Limit

**_Chapter Nineteen:_**_ Looming Shadows! The Creeping Limit_

The sun barely poked over the eastern horizon as Naruto walked around the back of the apartment complex, in full attire, minus the coat, which delicately rested in the crook of his bent, left forearm. He tightly clenched the commemorative forehead protector that Iruka-sensei had given him upon graduating to become a genin in his right hand. He felt it symbolic, in a way, to wear the hitai-ate with the blue cloth not just because it matched his current garb. It meant that this moment was special to him; for him to savor for years to come.

_'Today's the day…'_ His sapphire gaze of determination illuminated the low light brought about by the star that gave life to their planet. _'I hope to get that promotion!'_

The day had finally come. In three hours, he would be in the attendance of a fairly big crowd in the stadium on the far end of town. His nerves were so ramped up that he woke up relatively early, at around six o'clock in the morning. Not wanting to disturb his sleeping roommates, he quietly got dressed and was out the door, ready to warm up by testing out a few experimental techniques.

He summoned a Shadow Clone—seemingly becoming his trademark ninjutsu—and demanded that it hold his coat and forehead protector, to keep them safe.

Taking in his surroundings, the blond moved a few meters into a clearing near one of the local parks. _'This should offer me just enough room…but not enough for the jutsu Ero-sennin taught me, though…'_

The bewhiskered genin assumed a fairly firm stance—shoulders squared, right leg bearing the majority of his body weight, and palms loosely opened, with the left extended farther outward in comparison to the right. Feeling that it was a natural posture, the boy began the routine kata.

His feet shifted forward, a vortex of his essence hovering above his left palm like a small, galactic spiral for a brief second before it dissipated. Maintaining control, Naruto whipped out his right hand, producing a similar effect. As if in a feint, the fang-toothed shinobi spun around on a pivot and aimed low with a sweeping blow from his left palm, the spiraling barrier of chakra levitating from it in a brief second, before it petered away in evanescent wisps. Then, he sped up with a flurry of bursting chakra spirals from his hands as he made precision strikes to seriously injure his imaginary foe.

_'All right…'_ the kid started to conclude, _'I think that jutsu is complete! On to the next one!'_

Naruto hesitated on the second creation. It was still a work in progress. The technique in question pertained to bend wind to his will without cutting his hands in the process. By the blond's estimates, the Fuuton jutsu ranked almost close to jounin-level, give or take, but most certainly pretty high up on the chuunin-level skill sets.

Slowly, Naruto channeled chakra around his tenketsu to envelop his hands, claw-like nails filed down, in solid cones of energy. _'Now…carefully…sharpen the chakra and have it take on a windy nature…'_ With great focus, the twin funnels that wrapped around his digits started to assume a light green sheen as the very winds started to batter the blond's muscle shirt and armor padding. He straightened up his fingers into a knife-edge, stabilizing the cones as a sort of foundation. He decided not to test it any further than that and canceled the technique, lest it began to screech loudly and cause severe gashes on his limbs.

Naruto shook out the tingling sensation and tenderly kneaded each hand. He frowned a bit in thought. In the heat of battle, the pain would not really matter, since the adrenaline would buffer it by a significant amount.

For the next jutsu, Naruto held out his right palm in a cupping fashion and started to focus. A few beads of sweat broke through the boy's brow in concentration as a sphere the size of a grapefruit floated above it. Wisps of chakra poured off it in flakes, indicating that the technique was not quite compact, in his opinion. The 'spiraling ball of power,' as what Naruto called it for the moment, held its shape, but he felt that the energy coming off the sphere was not consistent and did not flow in a globular pattern, as what Kakashi-sensei's version had done.

Seeing the dense globe of chakra in his hand made him think of the time he got chakra burns after ripping the rubber ball, in addition to the muscle spasms that hindered his use of chopsticks for a day or so. It felt worse than the pain from Phantom Flame after overusing it! However, that still did not deter the bewhiskered genin to have it down in another week or so. Nodding in satisfaction, the youngest genin on Team Seven allowed the whirling dervish to peter out like smoke in the air.

Now, the last jutsu he wanted to test out was a bit of a trial-and-error one. By just understanding the mechanics behind the technique, Naruto realized that he could muster the chakra from all of his chakra pressure points, convert it to his main chakra nature and expel it in a fluid burst, but there was a catch…

It would normally leave him dizzy and disoriented after a couple of trial runs.

He grinned as he appeared to assume a stance similar to an athlete about to throw a discus, thinking on the one person and her teachings for making his insane jutsu inventions come to fruition, as he focused on the essence from within, from a few days before…

_After getting the directions leading to his friend's chamber, and without thinking, Naruto slid open the shouji. "Hey, Hinata-chan! I heard you were getting better!"_

_Unfortunately, for Hyuuga Hinata, seeing her crush step into her bedroom made her squeak in surprise, flinging the covers over her. Having a boy waltz into her room, unannounced, and while she was in a sleeping gown…_

_It was totally embarrassing! It felt akin to essentially being naked in front of the boy she liked!_

_"N-Naruto-kun!" A lone eye exposed itself from the tangle of quilts covering her. "Why are you here?"_

_The blond boy shook his head. "Why so cute?" he muttered under his breath as he sat down on his feet. "Heh…Sorry for barging in. I just got done talking with your dad, and then, I came to see how you were doing…"_

_"Oh…Well, what did he say to you?" she asked, face still covered._

_"It looks like those blankets are trying to swallow you whole, Hinata-chan," he dully remarked, feeling like there was a barrier between them. In this case, the covers had to go. "I won't take you seriously if you don't show me your face."_

_He thought he heard the Hyuuga maiden sigh before revealing her countenance, hair kind of disheveled from extended convalescence at the clan complex. Her mouth edged into a thin line. "You could have knocked…"_

_Naruto rolled his eyes. "You know me…the uncouth ruffian of the Hidden Leaf! I never knock! Besides," he gave her a goofy grin, "if I knocked on the shouji, I probably might've ripped the rice paper.."_

_Hinata's idol made her shake her head at his antics. Was that the reason she liked him? To not give a care about what people thought of him? To bravely venture where any sane person would have turned back?_

'The determination and guts that I seem to lack…' _she bitterly thought, a frown marring her delicate features._

_"What's wrong, Hinata-chan?" he worriedly asked. "I thought I'd have you in a giggling fit, by now."_

_A small smile managed to find its way to her lips. "It's okay, Naruto-kun. It's just that…" Her voice grew fainter as a figure crossed the borders of her bedroom._

_"What…?" The blond shinobi followed his friend's drifting gaze to the person who spoiled and killed the mood._

_Hyuuga Neji, who currently had duties around the clan complex, passed by, somewhat haughtily, before leaving their line of sight._

_Her opalescent eyes landed back on the boy, now displaying a feeling of physical tension around his shoulders. "Naruto-kun?"_

_"Listen, I gotta go," he firmly declared, his tone not brooking any arguments. After excusing himself, he got up and approached the sliding door. He hesitated and paused by it. "When you get better, meet me for lunch at the Ichiraku Ramen Bar, okay?"_

_He almost missed the ghost of a nod by a speechless indigo-haired maiden._

XXXXXXXXXX

_On the third of August, four days before the Chuunin Trials' final rounds, Naruto and Hinata met up at the ramen stand at around noon. He decided to leave his fox kit at home, telling him to work on another technique. He hoped to any kami who guarded the home that his furniture did not get damaged._

_The duo ate and sat in silence, a light breeze cooling off the rather warm and humid day._

_The blond genin felt that it coincidentally fit to the storm brewing within her household, as noted by the billowing clouds that crept across the sky. He briefly recalled how tense the atmosphere surrounding the Hyuuga complex was, almost like emotions ran high and were set on a hair trigger at the slightest provocation._

_Not one to like the pensive calm surrounding them, the bewhiskered ninja decided to break it. "I noticed the high tension around your clan complex. You mind telling me about it?" He stirred his noodles before lifting them up in his chopsticks and sucked them into his mouth._

_The opalescent-eyed kunoichi shrunk in on herself. She did not want to bring up the problems at home. "Maybe later…"_

_Naruto carefully rested his wooden utensils across the rim of his bowl of beef ramen and sighed. "You know, Hinata-chan, I hate it when people lie to themselves." He cut his eyes to the right, taking in her small frame in the loose, white jacket. "Tell me what's wrong."_

_Her shoulders tightly locked up. "Not here…" Her eyes looked around. "M-Maybe somewhere more…um…private?" Her tone was so low that, had it not been for Naruto's enhanced hearing, he probably would have missed that suggestion._

_His blue eyes lit up. "I got an idea…" As impulsive as ever, he fished into his pockets to pay for their meals, grabbed the smaller girl by the hand, and almost took off her arm in the process as he started to run._

_"W-Where are we going?" she squawked, feeling like a flag in the breeze._

_"You'll see!" he chirped in response._

_"B-But…our ramen…"_

_"You were poking at it, and you hardly tasted it," the blue-eyed kid reasoned. _

**"That's what he said…"**

_'By the gods, fox, I swear…another outburst like that…'_

The Kyuubi merely laughed at putting the kid off-kilter.

_Anyway, what was he ranting about in his head again? _

_Oh, right…What a waste of preciously good ramen! Such a crime! "Besides, I want to get you out of your funk and take your mind off what's going on at home."_

XXXXXXXXXX

_After bargaining for an open training field, the two got to work with a light-contact spar._

_Hinata went for a belly shot with her foot, but her partner cupped her ninja sandal with his two hands before spinning her around. She twisted the back of her hand to meet Naruto's face, but he contorted his back to avoid the glancing blow._

_Then, her window opened up with a double-cupped palm into the boy's chest, sending him staggering back._

_"Damn…you got me," he mumbled, to which the clan heiress smiled._

_"It's…nothing, really," she deflected._

_"Nonsense, Hinata-chan! Give yourself more credit! You've gotten tougher!" he commended._

_Just as she was about to dismiss the praise, a peal of thunder ripped through the area, causing her to jump in surprise._

_"Hm…" Naruto felt a raindrop on the tip of his nose as the precipitation started to fall harder and faster. "Hinata-chan, come closer!" He flew through his four-seal hand sequence and willed the dirt to circle around the two of them as the hemisphere of earth-natured chakra hardened into an earthen dome. He then punched a small hole out the side with a motion of his fist, allowing some bit of light into the hastily-made shelter._

_The bright flash, followed by the resounding clang boomed in Hinata's ears, igniting her small phobia of lightning._

_She felt a strong arm over her shoulders as Naruto held her close. "It's all right, Hinata-chan. Calm down. It'll pass over…soon…I hope…"_

_The younger of the two felt her cheeks heat up from the close contact with her crush. She loved the warmth provided by the blond as his breathing kept even and steady._

_For some time, as the rain hammered down on the rocky formation covering them, Hinata decided to divulge what was on her mind. "I'm sorry, Naruto-kun. It's just that…"_

_Blue eyes looked down at deep-blue hair, practically smelling the aroma of lilac hair shampoo. "Just that…what?" he prompted._

_"The lightning…It reminded me of that night…"_

_The pointy-eared ninja closed his eyes, trying to reel in his impatience. "Keep going…Let it out…"_

_"…Did you know that I was kidnapped, Naruto-kun?" she asked him, looking up at him, a really sad look marring her features._

_Eyes of unabashed sympathy met those that reflected the color of the pale moonlight. "I…didn't know. In fact, I barely know anything about you, Hinata-chan. We only meet up for training, if our schedules cross, but aside from that…it's like we're perfect strangers…" Unmasked confusion dotted his face._

_The elder daughter of the Hyuuga clan head giggled. It made him look cuter, especially with the pointy ears. "You get to understand people by just talking to them," she simply noted, eyes blinking in pure innocence._

Naruto admired his handiwork at the large groove left by his technique, shaking off the dizziness brought upon by it. While gathering his bearings, he remembered how she gave him the history that segued from her irrational fear of lightning…

_"Nine years ago, Kumo signed a non-aggression pact with Konoha after the brief war we fought with them. Sadly, the head ninja, and ambassador to promote the agreement, broke it on the night he tried to take me away, just for my eyes."_

_"Whoa…" It was apparent that he was not the only who had a crappy childhood. "What happened after that?"_

_"My father caught the man and killed him on our grounds, but that was the start of another nightmare…" She trailed off as she wiped away the tears. "Kumo demanded that my father turn himself in and give up his body, but, instead of my father, Neji's father, Hizashi, took his place, seeing that he was the younger twin and branded with the Hyuuga Bunke Juinjutsu, which would seal off the secrets to the Byakugan…just like the seal that is on Neji-nii-san's forehead now."_

_"How'd you find out about all this without telling your cousin?" he wondered aloud._

_"…People speak in hushed whispers," Hinata mysteriously answered. "You never know what you see when you read lips with the Byakugan…"_

_"I see…" He absently rubbed his thumb over her soft shoulder. "Your father doesn't make it any easier, what with his extremely high expectations and all that."_

_"That may be true," Hinata conceded, "but I want to thank you, Naruto-kun…"_

_"Thank me?" He blinked. "For what?"_

_She snuggled deeper in his chest. "…For showing what it means to get back up after getting knocked down, time and time again."_

_"…And you seem to always have the right words to say at the right moments…" He then cryptically remarked, "Looks like everyone has demons to face and conquer…" He murmured that to himself, but it fittingly applied. "Then again…how come the Old Man didn't put his foot down and crush Kumo?" It did not make sense. The head ninja of the Hidden Cloud—an envoy to represent the creeds of his hidden village—damaged the trust provided in that non-aggression treaty. If anything, Kumo had to pay…for the wrongdoings in the international incident._

_"According to my father," the girl explained, "resources have been used up on both sides. The Kyuubi incident put Konoha in quite a deficit." She hugged her knees to her chin. "The clan behind the incident wanted to only bargain with the Hyuuga clan."_

_Naruto, for lack of a better word, was still baffled by the lunacy of it all. "It still doesn't make sense to me, though! _Their_ head ninja was caught whisking you away on _our _land! He paid the price! Why did the Hyuuga give up your uncle, Neji's father?"_

_"…A life for a life…" Hinata sadly replied. She then looked up to her idol and crush. "Don't be so hard on Neji-nii-san, Naruto-kun. There's a lot of things Father hasn't told him, yet."_

_The blond hummed as he closed his eyes. "Can I ask you for a favor, then?"_

_"Eh?" Hinata tensed up in astonishment. "A-Anything for you, Naruto-kun…"_

_He glanced down, opening his cerulean orbs and stared with a clear sensation of unbreakable will. "Show me the ways of your clan."_

_The poor girl looked horrified. "Y-You know I can't do that!"_

_He brushed off her worries with a dismissive wave of his free hand. "Let _me _handle what comes my way. I can take the punishment!" He grinned in a bold fashion like a prankster getting ready to pull off his biggest stunt._

In real time, Naruto examined the concentric rings from his technique, evenly spaced out about a good two meters in diameter. Hinata had taken all of five minutes to deliberate on the favor he asked of her, weighing the pros and cons.

_Feeling that the rain had stopped, the blond shinobi canceled out his jutsu, allowing the rock formation to crumble back into the dirt._

_"Well, you've been quiet for a while, now, Hinata-chan. What's your answer?"_

_Hinata stood resolute. "If I can help you in any way, then I will assist you."_

The blond ninja finished his routine, feeling that his techniques were set to go.

_'I wonder if Hinata-chan managed to figure out what she wanted to learn…'_

**"Are you going to tell her about…little ol' me, boy?"** The ghastly behemoth before the bars of his prison had a knowing grin etched in place. **"You heard her confession under the tree when you taught her Suiton, and she practically spilled her guts to you, and you haven't the courage to utter even one carefully guarded secret to the one who admires you?"**

Ice dropped into the pit of his stomach when the demon fox prodded him to reveal his deep, dark secret surrounding his birth and his ties to the phantom sealed away within him. _'…Maybe later…but, definitely, not now…'_

**"You're getting cold feet, boy. Why do you hesitate?"**

_'It's not like I…'_ His thought suddenly petered out. Did he really not trust those around him, even though he was willing to sacrifice his life for them? Was he really going to utter those words from his mindscape to the crimson tailed-beast?

**"Trust them? Confide in them? Do you feel that you will get hurt if their faces turn to those of the coldhearted villagers who treat you with chilling indifference?"**

Deep down, Uzumaki Naruto felt the need to tackle and overcome this paranoia. His friends and important people would accept him…right? They did now, but what about later, when they find out? Not if, but _when_…?

Hell, the only one who knew about Fuzz-Butt out of his age group was his apartment companion, Haku. Then again, she suffered for something beyond her control, and what lay in her blood. There was mutual understanding and a foundation that stood rock-solid and would weather the tests of time.

As his body practiced a few routine kata stances, lost in his musings, he felt a new presence fill the forest clearing. All his warring thoughts ceased as he felt in control again when he turned to see a groggy-eyed Kin warily glancing in his direction. "You're up early," he offhandedly commented, taking note of her loaned pair of black biker shorts, white tank-top and a black hair-band that kept the bangs from her line of sight.

_'Thank you, Ino…'_ he mentally gave gratitude to the mind-walking kunoichi for the quick favor, under the guise that Haku-chan needed exercise clothes for training while still strapped for cash. The borrowed clothes held a snug fit on her lithe frame, if Naruto had to say anything about it. The swelling around her eyes came close to disappearing, all together, he realized after the fact.

**"She's showing a bit of skin…"**

_'Really, Kyuubi? Is that all you ever think about? Give it a rest! It's too early!'_

**"You're blue-balling me, bro…"** The fox clawed at his cage. **"I'm dying for release, here!"**

_'Don't…call me bro, Fuzz-Butt…'_ he noted with a strange tone. _'That sounds odd coming from you…'_

"It's eight o'clock," the slightly older girl grumbled, grabbing his attention. "Why are you up?"

"I was just warming up before heading to the stadium," he truthfully admitted.

"By destroying part of the park?" she sarcastically retorted, pointing down at the large divot of upturned grass and earth around the blond's ankles.

He nonchalantly shrugged it off. "Just making sure I don't screw things up. That's all."

"By the way," Kin noted after the fact, "your little, talking fox asked where you went off to."

The boy standing in the small dip in the earth blinked a few times before whistling, his thumb and forefinger making a horseshoe-like ring around his teeth.

Before long, the dusty-hued fox kit zipped around back and collided with the blond as he fell with the momentum.

"Mornin' to you, too, buddy," Naruto doted as he rubbed the top of Doshaburi's head. He noticed that almost all of the residents of his apartment were present…except for one. "Where's Haku-chan?"

Kin absently rubbed her forearm. "She already left."

"Huh…" Normally, she would greet him in the mornings before she headed off to do whatever.

"She did say she was going to see you before she left."

_'Guess I spaced out…'_ The rushing flood of memories permeated his mind's eye as his two replicas dispelled in the apartment. "Oh…She went to the Tower to report in…" He then noticed that Kin still stood rooted to the spot. "You look like you got something else to say, so just spit it out, already."

The other brunette looked away and found a low-hanging tree branch to be rather interesting. "She gave me this blank stare and warned me to not stomp over your kindness."

An eyebrow jutted upward on Naruto's face. "Well, she does get protective of the friends she holds close to her heart."

Kin appeared thoughtful for a moment, her mouth forming words before twisting into a thin frown. "…You should get going…"

"I should, shouldn't I?" he rhetorically asked, taking note of the sun's position. _'Near eight, huh?'_ He casually strode his way from the little crater in the ground before he reminded himself of something. "Oh, Kin-chan, before I forget…"

"Huh?" Black eyes vacantly stared into blue.

He gave the foreign girl a hard look, releasing a bit of an oppressive aura that threatened to swallow her whole. "You know I have to have a clone watch over you, to make sure your intentions are true." The atmosphere constricted her windpipes as those very orbs burning through her shifted into an arctic glare. "If you _ever_ hurt any of my friends, in any way, then I will end your life, personally."

Kin gulped in fear, her life delicately hanging by a thread. Those words uttered by the blond before her promised death for any hint of betrayal. "I…understand…"

The sapphire-eyed male pivoted on his heels to walk away and retrieve his coat and hitai-ate, fox hound lagging at the rear. His face turned to a profile to maintain eye contact. "I don't know what Orochimaru is planning, but I hope you do the right thing and help foil whatever he's doing…if you know what's good for you…"

As her not-so-strict captor left the clearing, Tsuchi Kin felt at war with herself, placing her body and mind in a very precarious dilemma. Should she turn over a new leaf by aiding Konoha, or would her loyalties lay with what she considered familiar…considered home?

Did she really feel that Otogakure was a place where she was meant to belong? The hidden village comprised mostly of underground bunkers, for crying out loud!

A light breeze brushed against her exposed flesh as a single, green leaf, fluttered around her, which disrupted her thoughts, all together. She then panned her black eyes to the scenic wonder that Konohagakure provided—from the rich, abundant foliage to the pristine lakes and rivers sprinkled about. It was better to see the hidden shinobi village in person than on the map schematics.

_'Is this an omen for the winds of change?'_ she dwelled within her mind, considering her options, albeit limited.

XXXXXXXXXX

Naruto decided to stop by a rather small shop to eat some breakfast. Instead of ramen, which might have been the reason the gods probably went on vacation during that length of time, the blond boy settled for some miso soup, onigiri, and some freshwater salmon, to stimulate his brain. He needed to start firing on all cylinders before locking horns with the self-proclaimed genius shinobi. He scoffed at that notion as he bit into the orange-pink meat, contemplating on which rice ball he wanted to use as a chaser.

Being labeled a genius did not mean that a ninja could go around and run off at the mouth like he was the next big thing. _'There is someone else out there that is tougher than you…stronger than you…faster than you…'_ he recited the quote from Ero-sennin in his head. _'A ninja learns his lessons best from a moment of humility.'_ It was a numbered rule from the Shinobi Code, but Naruto forgot where did it exactly fall. Regardless of the number, Naruto found out the hard way through practical experience.

Either way, Naruto did not like being taken lightly and underestimated. For all his life, the boy vied for recognition, and by mere fortune, he was graced with a small circle of companions that helped ease the pain a bit. It was not much, but his loneliness started to fade away, apart from the occasional times where he doubted himself. However, his close ring of friends and mentors tempered him and made him feel stronger, for they often had the right words to say at the right time, more often than not, in order to lift his spirits or teach him a life lesson.

He also had a sparring partner in Hinata from time to time—whenever they ran into each other, and a begrudgingly respectful rivalry with Uchiha Sasuke, which no longer stood one-sided. He could feel the gap closing ever so quickly.

But…where did that leave Sakura? He had not tried to go one-on-one with her in a practice fight, but he would soon correct that later on, when the opportunity arose, to see where she fared in her capabilities as a kunoichi. He hoped she did not slack off during the one-month reprieve.

Downing the dark-tinted broth with a few swallows, Naruto wiped the remaining brew dribbling down his chin with the back of his hand and then wiped it on a napkin. Sometimes, he forewent proper etiquette rules. He was too distracted at the moment.

The blond boy gave the owner of the stand a small bow. "Thank you for the delicious food, Ossan!"

The portly man waved him off. "It's not a problem at all, kid." Then, a thoughtful look crossed his wheat-toned face. "Say, kid, are you, by chance, competing in the final rounds of the Chuunin Selection Exams today?"

His pointy ears wiggled. "I am!" the bewhiskered genin beamed, a thousand-watt smile bursting from his face.

_'He kind of looks like a younger version of the Yondaime…'_ The kindred old man gave him a smile in return. "Well, good luck, then! Do Konoha proud!"

"I will!" Naruto resolutely shouted before dashing off, hoping to get there before the crowd.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sarutobi Hiruzen, the current Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure, felt an uneasy foreboding that loomed over this particular day. It crept into his mind ever since his wayward student blatantly decided to show his face, just mocking the old man that he was close to impotent at thwarting his plans.

By an odd string of fortune, Yamanaka Inoichi barged into his room a few days ago to report on what he had witnessed through a comatose Hayate's eyes. It was a game-changer, for sure…

_The ponytailed blond practically burst into the room, displacing the air in the office and strewing the sheaves of documents almost everywhere._

_Even though his face remained calm, a bystander could have easily seen teeth tightening around his smoking implement—his calabash pipe. "You better have a good reason to have left my office in disarray, Inoichi," Hiruzen warned._

_Easily calming his breath, the mind-walking ninja humbly bowed to his commanding officer. "My apologies, Hokage-sama, for I didn't mean to be rude or interrupt at your inconvenience." Then, teal eyes met dark ones when the younger shinobi glanced up from said bow. "I have finished sorting through Gekkou Hayate-kun's memories before his comatose state. It would appear that…the Hidden Sand and the Hidden Sound have allied themselves with one another…"_

_So, the nagging suspicion clawing away in the wizened Hokage's mind had a funny way of telling him that his hunch was correct. "What exactly happened that night?" the Sandaime carefully inquired, already flying through a sequence of hand seals to place up a sound-blocking fuuinjutsu._

_"Sir," the Yamanaka clan head responded, "Hayate-kun witnessed a scroll being passed off from Yakushi Kabuto-kun, and Baki-san, the Sand trio's jounin-sensei, all the while muttering about some 'plans.' What they were, he couldn't tell, due to their hushed whispers and vague dialogue. However, Orochimaru was mentioned…albeit briefly." A sad look managed to break away from his business-like decorum when he saw an unreadable expression from the village leader. "They were on to him from the very start, and Baki-san intercepted him before he could get to you. Immediately after the assault, your son arrived on the scene, and in the nick of time, too. If only he had shown up even thirty seconds later, then…"_

_The Third Fire Shadow rubbed on his thinning beard in contemplation, tobacco smoke puffing out of his pipe like a chimney. "I understand…" He turned at a profile to look out at the view provided to him by his office. "We were played for fools, all along…"_

_"Hokage-sama, what are your orders?" Inoichi prompted._

_"…Track down Yakushi Kabuto, if you can. More than likely, he's probably hiding away in some hole in the ground…along with his snake friend…" His eyes adopted a stony glint. "Orochimaru must be stopped, but I fear that we are a little late to the party in progress…"_

_"Black operation, sir?"_

_Hiruzen nodded. "I want this strictly off the books, Inoichi. I want you to cross-check your information with the intelligence corps and Jiraiya's spy network and uncover any leads as to what they're planning…"_

_"Yes, sir. I'll leave right away!"_

For far too long, Sarutobi Hiruzen had let his most cherished student run amok and cause all sorts of mayhem and disorder in the ninja world, and most of the fault fell on him for not ending his life almost a decade or so ago. The blood that pooled in Orochimaru's hands descended into his cupped digits, as well. The sins of the student that were inherited by the master…

_'Is he really after the Sharingan, despite the underhanded trick Itachi-kun pulled on him?'_

Pertaining to that other Konoha runaway, Hiruzen let loose a hefty sigh, now all alone, save for his clandestine ANBU operatives cloaked about in his summoning chamber.

Uchiha Itachi was a subject of wonder and terror, all wrapped up in a big bundle. He knew the circumstances behind his status as a nuke-nin, and, once again, the Uchiha Massacre was brought about by his own complacency, in tandem with the steadily growing animosity and paranoia from his peers. He also felt deceived when Danzou, his political rival who chose to stay in the shadow, pulled a fast one on him and ordered Itachi to execute Order Sixty-Six on his kinsmen.

It was one of the numerous reasons he had the warmongering shinobi's secret task force shut down. The Uchiha Massacre merely proved as the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back.

_'I suppose it is time I made things right for a change…'_

He sifted through the clutter and found a blank sheet of paper. He knew that the death god nipped at his heels, and he felt that he should draw up his final missives as Sandaime Hokage, to try to fix the matters that have long since needed repair. Dark eyes gleamed with resolve as he started putting pen to paper.

_'Orochimaru, I will not let you get the satisfaction of destroying Konoha just for the fun of it! Itachi, I hope that you're well enough to initiate your final mission from outside Konoha's borders…'_

Hiruzen allowed the wheel of Lady Luck to spin, once he wrote out his will and testament for the parties affected.

_'Jiraiya…Naruto-kun…I leave it all to you, and I hope that you will forgive me in the next life…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Haruno Sakura felt conflicted as she blankly stared at her wardrobe in her lime-green pajamas, figuring out if she should change her appearance, or keep to the same thing. She scratched the back of her head in deep thought.

_'Red…or white?'_

**"I really don't think it matters in the long run, Soto-chan,"** her inner ego chimed in to add in her advice. **"What really matters to the judges are your skills, and not your attire."**

She glanced over at her alarm clock, which read a quarter to nine. The final rounds kicked off in a little over an hour. She had to think fast, lest she skipped breakfast.

_'Ah…the joys of choices…'_ she sardonically mused.

XXXXXXXXXX

The brooding brunet of Team Seven rose early, wishing he had another day of training to crunch in, were it not for Kakashi's insistence on taking a day of rest to relax and gather his thoughts for the string of matches he faced.

In the deep recesses of Uchiha Sasuke's mind, he damn well deserved it. The slave-driver of a teacher made him work to the bone for his speed and power, instead of using his ocular gift, merely claiming that he should use the Sharingan to better understand the flow of chakra within a technique…not just to copy it…

…just like what the dobe kept hammering into his head the entire time…

He supposed the blond had a point, but it just irritated Sasuke to the point that his teammate repeated that like a broken record. It really grated his nerves.

The heir to the Sharingan tossed off the cover and stepped on the creaking floorboards of his flat.

He allowed a few pops to leave his back as he stood up and stretched, feeling refreshed and ready to stomp someone's ass flat.

But, first, he felt the hankering for some tomatoes…

XXXXXXXXXX

Gunpowder ignited in the drums before they exploded around the stadium. The byproduct of teal, yellow, and maroon smoke burst into the air around the amphitheater-like setting. The small display of pyrotechnics caused a thunderous roar from the crowd, signaling the start of the Chuunin Exams' final rounds.

Naruto stood rooted to the spot in the arena, feeling that his eardrums would rupture from the extremely loud noise. _'Is this what Kiba has to control whenever he gets all nasty? Then I feel his pain…'_

It was a good thing that he did not oversleep, or else he would have been so late.

Now that the blond thought on it, it was a refreshing—but very out-of-character—surprise that their jounin instructor…was unreasonably early.

"Okay, Kakashi-sensei, what gives? Who killed you and took your place?" Naruto quipped to the ashen-haired veteran.

He heard a sigh escape his lips. "I'm the real deal, Naruto."

"What? No excuses for being early?" Something bugged him. He just knew it!

"Nope," Kakashi softly replied. "Just…enjoying the festivities…"

The bewhiskered genin took note of the distant tone his sensei uttered. _'He's distracted about something…'_

Then, a thought occurred to him. "Hey, where're Sasuke and Sakura?"

"Naruto!" he heard a familiar, female voice shout. "Over here!"

Blue eyes darted to the source of his sister-in-arms, who just strolled through the raised, latticed door and into the tunnel to the arena. "Whoa…Sakura, you look great!"

Sure enough, when she waltzed into the arena, an emerald hood framed her face, a point of cloth casting her eyes in a shadow underneath, but the material did not end at her neck; rather, the length fanned out into a split half-cape that extended to the middle of her back, her clan insignia—a white circle—divided on both flaps. The cerise-locked kunoichi decided to forego her body-framing cheongsam in favor of a red blouse with a white V-neck, chain mesh netting covering up her midriff. She had her seal tattoos hidden from view behind bandage wrappings over her forearms. She also decided to swap out those biker shorts for something a little more modest, which were a pair of skin-tight, white pants, under a green sash with dual curtains of cloth of the same coloration that stopped around the top of her kneecap.

The civilian-turned-ninja folded back the head covering and put a hand on her hips. "Thanks!" she beamed, green eyes sparkling from the praise. "It took me a while to figure out what to wear for a debut match!" She gave him a once-over. "…Not bad. You clean up well, yourself." Then, a slender eyebrow rose up. "Where's your trademark orange?"

He went through the motion of a lazy shrug, the edges of his battle coat fluttering out of sheer disturbance. "If I want people to take me seriously, I gotta start acting the part. Am I right?"

She heard a snort from behind her. "Hn…You look ridiculous, Sakura…"

Jade eyes narrowed to slits, only for them to open back up in surprise.

Uchiha Sasuke arrived on the scene, wearing a black shirt and complementary shorts, and with all of his limbs almost completely bandaged. However, that was not what caught Sakura off-guard.

The brooding, brunet heartthrob had a devilish smirk on his face.

_'Did he just…tease me?'_ Before long, the pink-haired girl's face started to feel really hot pretty quickly. "S-Sasuke-kun!"

"Hey, Duck-Butt, Sakura doesn't look bad, at all!" Naruto shouted in defense of his teammate. "Take that back!"

"Hmph…" he harrumphed. "Can't catch a joke when you hear one, dobe? Catch a clue, then."

The blond snarled. "You think you're _so_ cool, Sasuke."

"Tell me something I don't know," the Uchiha scion casually retorted.

"Well, get ready to get pounded into the dirt when we face off!" Naruto heatedly roared.

"I wouldn't even have to break a sweat, idiot…" He inwardly loved getting Naruto's goat. He thought he heard the sound of teeth grinding against one another. _'Music to my ears…'_

"Okay, kids, it's time to settle down," an approaching figure in standard Konoha ninja garb spoke up around what appeared to be a toothpick in his mouth, but in reality, it was a senbon, something that was very familiar to the blond shinobi. His shoulder-length, sandy-brown hair kept still due to a bandanna that had been knotted in front and angled to the left.

"Ah, Genma-kun," Kakashi chimed in after a period of odd silence, "I see you're overseeing the final rounds on Hayate-kun's behalf?"

The newly identified ninja, Shiranui Genma, shrugged his shoulders and chuckled, straight brown hair shuffling across the sides of his face. "It sure beats guard duty. That's for sure."

The Copy Ninja easily masked his grimace. _'I remember serving my time there…bored out of my mind…wishing that Icha-Icha was published way back when…'_

Genma's voice cut through his superior's inner musings. "We're still waiting on a few stragglers, but we should be starting things off on time today." He then turned to the then-bickering trio. "These your kids, Kakashi-senpai?"

"Yep. Aren't they interesting?"

"…You got a fine-looking team, sir. Now, you kids…" His tone grew a bit serious. "Don't make Konoha into a laughingstock on account of your behavior. We have a rep to maintain, so don't do anything that'll make you lose face in front of our clientele. Is that understood?" Three nods followed the question almost immediately. "Good." He then glanced up. "Ah, here come the rest of them!"

The other six combatants filed in, two at a time, with Lee and Neji leading the small group, Shino and Shikamaru in the middle, and the remaining Suna siblings lagging at the rear.

_'It…It's him, Master Naruto!'_ he heard his little cloudburst whine as he hid behind his companion's coat.

Naruto's eyes narrowed to thin slits as the Kyuubi threateningly growled in Gaara's direction. _'It's that Gaara kid that Sasuke has to face…'_ His game-face took on a grimmer edge. _'Is the bastard really ready to take him on?'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Hiruzen felt the wind picking up from his seat in the open-air sky box of the gladiator-esque stadium. The wizened Fire Shadow sensed something in the air; it prickled the hairs on the back of his neck.

One of his assistants, a man with a horrendous, wheal-like scar that covered the majority of the left side of his face and crept along the bridge of his nose, walked up to his commanding officer and knelt down. "All of the candidates have arrived, Hokage-sama," he whispered into his ear, cupping his hand over his mouth. "Furthermore, there was no sign of Orochimaru, so, please, stay vigilant."

The Sandaime hummed as the brim of his hat shadowed his face from view. "I understand, Raidou…" He tapered off when he felt a presence approaching him. Hiruzen turned to his left, taking in the ninja with a silky cloth covering the lower half of his face…and the imperial regalia of the Wind Shadow. "Oh…well, well…Kazekage-dono!" He decided to play his role as a friendly, welcoming diplomat among allies. "You must be tired from the journey here." He gestured for the other dignitary to take his seat alongside him.

"Not at all," the Fourth Wind Shadow deflected. "Good thing it's held here this time." He turned to face the honorable man in front of him. "While you're still a bit young, the trip may have been too much for you, Hokage-sama." A glint of something appeared in his eyes. "Maybe it's time you decided on your successor, hm?"

_'His tone…it's so oily…'_ The words were carefully measured in Hiruzen's critical attention to this Kazekage. However, his eyes crinkled before forcing a bit of mirth into his chuckle. "Please, don't treat me like an old man. I intend to do this for another five years or so…" _'Or sooner than that…but I dare not tell him…'_ The question boiled down to whether or not the Kazekage revealed his hand, tipping him off as either a fraud, or keeping himself secret. From what he had seen of the Fourth Wind Shadow, the man never hid his face from view. "Well, now," he stood up to address the crowd, "let's begin…"

He walked up to the railing, hands clasped behind his back, which caused a domino effect of silence to befall the spectators. "Thank you, everyone, for coming to Konoha's Chuunin Selection Exam! We will now start the main tournament matches between the nine participants who made it through the preliminaries, so…please stay and watch until the very end!"

XXXXXXXXXX

"All right, you guys," Genma dispassionately muttered, "this is the final test. The arena is different, but the rules still hold from the preliminary matches. Essentially, there are none. You fight until one of you dies or acknowledges defeat, but if I determine that the fight is over, I'll step in and stop it. You got that?" He was met with a pensive silence. "Now, the first fight. Uzumaki Naruto and Hyuuga Neji, you two stay put. For those left to compete, go to the waiting room until it is your turn."

The awaiting participants walked away, seeped into their own thoughts.

"Dosha-chan," Naruto calmly spoke up as he knelt down, out of Neji's earshot and into Doshaburi's own, "I need you to be my extra set of eyes and ears for me, okay?" He heard his fox-hound yip in the affirmative. "Good. Now, head up into those trees. This won't be long…I hope…"

_'I wish you well, Master…'_ The dust-hued canine bounded away with some pep in his step.

One he got the confirmation that the ocher-toned vulpine was in position, in addition to hearing the start of the match from the new proctor, blue eyes turned to burn a hole into uncaring white ones.

The blond saw that arrogant smirk. "It looks like you have something to say," he heard the long-haired brunet coolly intone.

"I'm not in the mood to talk, Neji, so let's get this show on the road," Naruto listlessly remarked as he assumed a battle-ready stance.

_'His eyes…'_ The fatalistic shinobi awakened his ocular gift to take note of the blond's defiant stance. _'They show that he is sure of himself…'_

"As you wish, _loser_," the talented Hyuuga spat. "You're too blind to the fact that destiny favors me in this battle."

The blue-eyed genin frowned. "Oh, the irony," he flippantly clipped. "Only weak-willed people blame their problems on fate or misfortune as a scapegoat. But, anyway," he siphoned some water from the atmosphere to start off the match, "like I said, I'm not here to yap my gums. I'm here to fight!" With a goal in mind, he flew through a few hand seals and launched the small deluge toward the surprised ninja before him.

Anticipating the sneak attack, Neji strafed to the side with grace as the liquid torrent roared through.

The window of opportunity opened on its own as Naruto summoned a few dozen of Kage Bunshin to keep the Byakugan heir at bay. He knew better than to charge into close range against a practitioner of the Gentle Fist. _'That could cost me appeal points!'_ he yelled from within. He had to be careful not to make his brief escape for breathing room too obvious to the boy he was fighting. He flipped through a few more hand seals to conjure more moisture in the air, keeping his strategy as close to obscure as he allowed. _'I got something cooking up for you, you arrogant asshole!'_

**"Suiton: Karyuu no Jutsu!"**

Once more, the bewhiskered genin launched the spiraling water cannon to try to throw his opponent off balance.

Meanwhile, Neji vaulted over two of Naruto's doppelgangers and deftly landed in front of two more, and, with a single tap against their chests, they instantly dispelled. In his panoramic, photo-negative view of the world around him, he saw the stream of chakra-enriched water head straight his way. He swiftly tapped two more clones in the back, causing them to poof away into white vapors as he expertly dodged it in a crouch a split-second later.

Getting a feel of the other boy's attack patterns, the last of the Uzumaki summoned more clones. Unfortunately for him, the vaunted genius of the Hyuuga clan took note that the original stood behind his line of defense that was his battalion. Turning on a quick pivot, Neji dashed around and over Naruto's copies to hit the authentic one in the chest.

"You're finished!" the long-haired brunet triumphantly roared.

Naruto coughed up a bit of blood as it dribbled down his chin. "I…guess you…got me…" he panted, "…not!" The annoying grin plastered on his face burned into Neji's memory as who he thought was Naruto petered out into smoke, leaving behind a wooden log, courtesy of the Kawarimi no Jutsu.

_'He replaced himself? Where is he hiding?'_ Veins bulging more around his eye sockets, Neji strained to take in the surrounding area.

"Right behind you, bastard!"

White eyes widened in shock as he turned around, seeing Naruto's hands in the Seal of the Dog again, but instead of water gushing from him, the stadium floor started to turn into a cloudy haze. _'Has he discovered my blind spot?'_ Chills ran up and down his spine as the boy's chakra blinded his Byakugan, forcing him to dismiss the chakra he had pouring into them. _'That can't be…It must have been a fluke!'_

The real Naruto, on the other hand, crouched on a branch, away from the Hyuuga's line of sight. _'I'll try another clone swarm and force him to use this supposed ultimate defense.'_

"You can't hide from me forever, Uzumaki!" he heard Neji shout from downwind.

"Watch me…" he muttered under his breath, allowing the wind to carry his voice to whisper a haunting melody into the talented ninja's ears.

XXXXXXXXXX

Izumo and Kotetsu, the judges for the entrance exam to test the chuunin-hopefuls' awareness of genjutsu, looked on in rapt fascination at how Naruto carefully considered his plan of attack from the concrete bleachers.

"Hm…That Naruto is something else," the darker-haired ninja observed. "It's like he already knows how to dissect the Byakugan's weaknesses."

"Call it a stroke of luck or being thoroughly prepared," Izumo muttered while rubbing his clothed head, "but who would have thought that the kid could turn into a capable shinobi in the matter of months?" He stood at a loss, not really having anything snarky to say about the blond brat.

"Heh…" The black hair in the style of palm fronds swayed as Kotetsu shook his head. "It's like Kakashi-senpai gave him brain food, or something."

"Well, whatever it is," his battle partner admitted, "he set the boy straight."

XXXXXXXXXX

From the bleacher seats, cyan eyes looked on in awe when that rich, cool fog permeated the bottom floor, roiling and billowing like low-lying clouds. "Kick that guy's ass, Whiskers!" Ino shouted. In the back of her mind, however, she wondered about something…

_'Since when have I ever started cheering for Naruto?'_ Maybe it factored down to her fellow blond putting a swift boot to the arrogant Hyuuga's ass and knock him down a peg or two. Either way, she vowed to root in his corner, as she should have from the very start.

His bun-haired teammate, Tenten, on the other hand, looked on in unabashed worry. _'Neji…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

"That boy is truly something else, Hokage-dono," the Kazekage airily commented, touching together his fingertips as he looked down at the scene. _'Naruto-kun…your punishment will be swift by the time I get my hands on you…'_ Beneath the face-obscuring cloth, a tongue lapped across dry, scaly lips.

Sharp eyes cut over to the potential threat, feeling the subtle amounts of murderous intent trickle from the mysterious Wind Shadow. "He's one of a kind," Sarutobi uttered through a tight, forced smile, even though it looked genuine. "There aren't many like him."

"…Interesting…"

_'I really don't know what's your game, but I will not let you touch a hair on the boy's head!'_ Hiruzen fiercely roared inside his mind, feeling the growing fires of combat sparking and igniting from within.

XXXXXXXXXX

Down in the stadium, Naruto summoned his clones, but decided to leave a couple of clever surprises within a choice few. His plan almost came to fruition, and the Hyuuga boy was none the wiser. _'Good…'_

_'Let him have it, Dosha-chan!'_ he signaled to his fox kit.

While he occupied Neji with his special doppelgangers, he felt a spike in energy from his canine, which prompted the long-haired brunet to register it on his Byakugan. _'Just what is that little fox going to do?'_

Pale eyes widened a great deal when a relatively large, magenta-hued fireball homed in on his location. _'What in the world?'_

Hyuuga Neji grew tired of these little head games that the blond nuisance started. It was time to fight back. When one of those annoying clones tried to strike him, chakra started to expel from his frame and expanded into a whirling dome of energy as he blasted away part of the chilling miasma and the rest of the blond's replications, along with that ball of flame.

When he stopped twirling like a spinning top, he heard slow clapping coming from the lifting mist. "Pretty impressive, Neji. I thought I had you for a second…" Naruto blithely remarked amid his Hyouton: Hyoumu no Jutsu. He received the erratic bouts of feedback from his copies and filtered them into his memory.

"Don't think this is over, loser," the long-haired brunet icily intoned. "You have yet to land a critical blow on me."

"Just measuring the competition…" The blond pursed his lips in thought. "There's just something else I have to test out, too, just to make sure…"

"You're not testing out anything!" Neji thundered as he stormed toward the awaiting blond.

"Careful, now," Naruto chirped. "No need letting your rage blind you to the point of making a mistake!"

Byakugan now active again, the hope of the Cadet Branch saw his opportunity to strike while Naruto stood there. "You're within the range of my—"

"—divination!" Naruto imitated, assuming the stance of the Intercepting Dragon taijutsu style—hands loosely opened to resemble claws as he braced his right leg with the majority of his weight, which got the clan head up in the higher seats to critically watch the street urchin. With a twist of his palms, Naruto rushed into Neji's guard and, with a burst of spiraling chakra, forced him back with a violent push.

**"Rasenshou!"**

With a grunt, the vaunted Hyuuga genius got his balance thrown off as the counter-clockwise motion of the chakra pouring from his foe's fists lifted him and turned him around, unceremoniously landing him on his side and skidding along the ground for about a meter.

"You were saying, Neji?" Naruto asked, guard still raised and eyes carefully watching him…like a predator would its prey.

The downed combatant kicked out his legs, forcing Naruto to jump back and avoid the impromptu sweep as Neji twirled himself back up with brilliant finesse.

Not missing a beat, the Bunke member tried to land at least one glancing blow on the blond shinobi, but he somehow managed to nimbly evade his strikes with trained ease.

"You're boring me, Neji. I thought you were going to be a challenge…"

_'Don't rise to the bait…'_ Neji chanted inside his mind as he continued his assault. _'You're a Hyuuga. You're supposed to repress such emotions like anger…'_

"Oh, well," Naruto tiredly said in a sigh, "I guess it's time to throw the monkey off my back, then…"

Like a praying mantis, the bewhiskered genin quickly caught his adversary's right wrist and then began to spin around like a top…

XXXXXXXXXX

_'What is the meaning of this sacrilege, Uzumaki?'_ Hiashi dwelled on what looked like the Hakkeshou Kaiten, but it started to get wider…and adopted a whitish hue. _'You dare spit on our teachings since the olden times?'_

"Father, what's going on down there?" his younger daughter, Hanabi, innocently asked.

He had no proof, but he had an idea.

XXXXXXXXXX

_'Heh…this one's for those purist Hyuuga bastards in the arena!'_ Naruto inwardly considered as he focused to channel out his essence and converted it into the wind element, which promptly blew back Neji almost to the edge of the walled-in area. "What do you think of my Toppuu Kaiten?" He subtly picked up the hushed whispers from some of the Main Branch. Some of the comments he picked up…were unsavory. "It's much stronger than the original, since I decided to introduce my elemental nature into it. A piggybacked invention of my own, if you can consider it that." He decided to be the fallout guy for his good friend in case things went nuclear in the Hyuuga clan complex. _'Hinata-chan, in case things take a sour turn for the worse, I got your back…'_ He tried to search her out in the stadium, but the faces were many, and the familiar ones, even fewer.

"You…" Neji bitterly spat. "You have no right to wield the power of the Hyuuga!"

"Oh?" Naruto looked disinterested; almost like a shadow of his mentor. "Well, I saw your style, and I just…copied it." He shrugged. "Besides, weren't _you_ the one ripping off the _Main Branch_ by using the Hakkeshou Kaiten after seeing it just once, too?" Blue eyes narrowed to slits as he pointed in his direction. "Face the fact: you're just as big a hypocrite as the rest of your family; rather, the ones who resist changing the status quo, because they're too cowardly to admit their own faults!" That struck a nerve with the nobles in the audience, drawing in a focused ire as he felt burning eyes on him.

He put down his index finger and slid into a combat stance. "I'm tired of talking, and I came here to fight, so I'll just finish it off by saying this, Neji," Naruto continued, seemingly on a roll. "All of you are blind to the suffering of your own flesh and blood, and you don't want to rock the boat by turning the other cheek. Treating cousins, uncles, aunts and even siblings as if they were slaves and lower than dirt…As far as I'm concerned, I see that neither as a family nor a clan; merely, an institutionalized serfdom comprised of individuals who share common ancestry…and nothing more…" He thought he saw steam whistling out of Neji's ears from hearing the truth, point-blank. "Search your feelings, for you know it to be true."

For the second time in this tournament, the unflappable Hyuuga lost his cool and rushed toward the blond shinobi with red fury. "You will hold your tongue, knave!" he bellowed. "You know nothing of my pain!" He unleashed a chakra-filled palm strike toward Naruto's gut; however, the blue-eyed boy kept his composure and sidestepped the thrusting palm. Performing a cartwheel into a round-off, Naruto conjured a few more of his shadow clones in mid-flip, trying his best to buffer the onslaught.

Unfortunately, the long-haired brunet was not having any of that. He leapt over one clone, disrupted the matrices of another, forcing it to gush into water, and struck another one in the chest, dispersing it back into a slimy goop.

The blond jinchuuriki felt relieved that at least a clone of his was spared, much to his odd string of luck in battle. _'Careless error will cost you, Neji…'_

He doubled back as his copy ran through a ridiculously long chain of hand seals. _'Ero-sennin, why didn't you show me a shortcut to cut down the length of the sequence?'_ He kept his head and mind clear, summoned another horde of cloned soldiers, and distractedly wondered if Doshaburi wiped himself out after that Kitsunebi Endan—or his Fox-Fire Round Shot. For now, his dirt-hued familiar had the potential to fire only one shot, but, hoping and willing, in the future, Doshaburi would fire off more of those helpful blasts. Having extra firepower always helped.

And, on that vein of thought…his clone finished the sequence on the Seal of the Bird.

**"Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu!"**

_'Man, is _that_ going to zap my chakra tank by a good deal…'_ Naruto sadly thought, already mourning the loss of a piece of his own chakra. _'Oh, well, I'm sure I'll be back up to snuff in a few hours or so…'_

All thoughts in the amphitheater-like coliseum ground to a halt as a colossal serpentine made of the liquid leftovers of Naruto's other failed techniques roared to life and spiraled its gaping maw in the direction of the Hyuuga who wanted to ambush him.

Taking a small breather, he willed another clone to life to handle the remaining sludgy earth and water. Not skipping a beat, the doppelganger aided the oncoming assault with an attack from the side.

_Ne. U. Uma. Tatsu. Mi._

_'Rat. Hare. Horse. Dragon. Serpent.'_

**"Doton: Daichi Kobu no Jutsu!"**

The five-seal sequence finished out with the copy placing his spread-out digits and lightly tapped against the ground, shifting the globs of earth into three, hardened prominences and diagonally aimed for the now-standing Hyuuga genius. _'What are you gonna do, now, Neji?'_

Being easily predictable, the highly intelligent ninja spun around to deflect and buffer the barrage of elemental ninjutsu attacks, which further stunned the crowd around them, but they cared not for the faceless in the stadium.

They were living in the moment, putting their faith and beliefs on the line.

The scion of the Yellow Flash dashed off to a tree branch to conceal his presence as his clone kept the boy's attention, but this time, with another Suiton: Karyuu no Jutsu.

From what he gathered, the chakra pouring off the slightly older ninja was a bit weak at the top, but for the most part, it held together into a cohesive burst and evenly spread out, aside from the point of contention. He needed to make sure that the rotating speed and angle were spot-on, or else he would bounce off. _'I'll show him that there's a flaw in _every _jutsu, and not every jutsu is perfect…'_

"Hm…" he hummed outwardly as he then decided to stick to the wall behind the tree-limbs. "I guess it's time to use…_that_ jutsu…" He turned to see where his little buddy nestled. He was out cold for the rest of the match. _'Give him a good meal and a breather, and he'll be good to go.'_

The rush of images in his head caused him to hastily turn to see bulging veins and furious eyes glower in his direction, his Kage Bunshin no longer present. "Oh…you found me. I guess I'm it, then?" he nonchalantly asked, taking his ire for a joke. "What…?" His face comically contorted into an ear-to-ear grin, eyes fox-like. He really wanted to get a rise out of the supposedly coolheaded genius shinobi. "You mad, bro?" He plucked out a kunai from his holster and twirled it.

"…" The older boy's frown lowered even further on his face.

_'Gotta start being cheap on the chakra, now…'_ Naruto reasoned as he summoned another line of defense for the oncoming Hyuuga.

"Those clones can't keep you safe for long, Uzumaki," Neji all but spat in the younger ninja's direction as he put on another burst of speed.

With a quick substitution, the real Naruto melded well into the crowd, taking a small risk that could open him up for a retaliatory assault.

His luck ran out when the Hyuuga mastermind quickly discerned from the crowd and charged straight at him. _'Smarter than I gave him credit for…'_

Chakra-enlaced hands crossed and blocked each other for the next several seconds. Neji needed just one, solid hit whenever the gap in Naruto's taijutsu showed itself. The blond jinchuuriki tried for a knee to the gut, but the long-haired brunet capitalized on the mistake by grabbing his opponent's patella and nudged the center of his stomach, which caused Naruto to wince when he felt the foreign chakra invade his pathways.

**"That white-eyed freak made me feel a small jolt…almost like a bee sting…"** The fox felt the alien energy that tried to shut down the core of his chakra circulatory system.

Naruto backpedaled and staggered back, leaving the gap open for his copies to hold him off as he flexed his abdominal muscles to ease the pin-needle sensation. "That actually hurt…"

"You're not getting away from me, Uzumaki!" Carefully avoiding the mass of clones, he bobbed and wove like liquid water before he vindictively glared at the original Naruto. "You are within my divination…"

Fingertips alight with the Hyuuga prodigy's essence drilled through the blond ninja with swift, precise calculations.

**"Hakke: Rokujuuyon Shou!"**

"Guh…" Naruto grunted as he felt his chakra getting blocked by the blazing Sixty-Four Palms of the Eight Trigrams, trying his best to stem the pain…until he felt something rupture inside him, forcing out a glob of blood from his mouth. Heavily panting, and heart erratically beating, the bewhiskered shinobi knelt into a bow. His eyelids felt heavy as he fluttered between the worlds of consciousness.

**"Focus, boy!"** the carmine phantom bellowed within his mind as he witnessed his vessel fall down, into the dirt, plopping face first. **"We must not lose this fight!"**

He heard the shuffle of feet moving away from his range of sound. _'Damn…Gotta focus…'_ He got a bit gung-ho and expended too much chakra with back-to-back ninjutsu.

"He's finished, proctor," Neji declared with finality. "He's not getting back up."

Shiranui Genma almost officially ended the match, until he heard Naruto's hand grab at the ocher dust.

"What did I tell you…?" he rasped out when he looked up at his opponent with a closed eye. The left eye that remained open glimmered like a cobalt jewel. "You don't decide such things!"

His opponent's expression matched that of unhidden shock. _'That can't be! He should be done!'_

The blond loudmouth shakily stood up, wobbling to and fro on his unsteady feet. "You think this is finished? Well, you've seen nothing, yet, Neji…" He wiped the dribble of blood from the side of his face.

"How is it that you're still standing after my attack?" the long-haired brunet hissed in indignation.

"You called me a loser," Naruto gruffly remarked as he thumbed his chest, "…but this unfortunate loser figured out how to penetrate your precious Kaiten…" He craned his neck to let a few pops emit from it. "This fight has just begun…"

Neji merely scoffed at that thought, eyes narrowing to slits around the protruding veins. "Are you an idiot? The Hakkeshou Kaiten is the ultimate defense. A meager street urchin like you could never be able to think your way out of a paper bag; even less so when it comes to defeating the secret arts of the Hyuuga. Fate has decreed that you give up."

"Heh…" Naruto snorted, grin stretching from ear to ear, before he let loose a seemingly unhinged laughter. "Hahahaha!"

"…" The skilled Byakugan-wielder blinked. "I fail to see the humor in this situation."

"Damn…How the hell can you walk straight; let alone, be a ninja with that stick so far up your ass?" Naruto smarmily commented before wiping away a stray tear. "You purist Hyuuga make me laugh, now. There's a flaw to _every_ technique. Your Kaiten is no exception. The same goes with your Juuken. Long range is your worst enemy…especially in regard to your field of vision…directly behind you, starting past the base of your neck…and past three meters…" Unreserved shock crept onto the older boy's face. "That's right, Neji. I know about your blind spot, so don't look down on me, chump."

_'This blond irritant…he's starting to annoy me…'_ the thick-blooded Hyuuga grimly reflected. "Your tenketsu are sealed up. You can't use any more ninjutsu against me."

"Oh? Try me…" The blond genin mustered up his strength to form the Seal of the Ram to focus his energy. _'All right, fox, let's do this! I know it's going to hurt like hell!'_

**"…As you insist…"** The Nine-Tailed Demon Fox's snickers rumbled like thunder across the bars containing him as he flooded the chamber with his red essence. **"Besides, I always take pleasure in your pain…"**

Sharp, blue eyes pierced through Neji's soul when he unleashed an inhuman growl.

"It's pointless, like I told you! Face your fate!" he all but bellowed. _'Why is he so adamant to not throw in the towel? Surely, he can't…'_

This so-called destiny must have laughed in the white-eyed Hyuuga's face when he saw several, floating embers hovering around the bewhiskered ninja. As they suddenly appeared, the flickering flames of maroon hue receded into Naruto, which caused a startling chain reaction.

"Guaaaaaaaah!" The unknown scion of the Yellow Flash howled in pain as the burning, crimson essence flooded his system, forcing open the chakra pressure points that Neji previously shut down. His hands balled into fists by his side as he screamed to the heavens with an animalistic roar, red energy spiraling skyward and shaggy blond hair standing on edge.

_'Impossible!'_ Neji frighteningly surmised as he could actually _see_ the chakra rolling off the boy in unrestrained torrents. He had to shield his eyes, lest debris flew into them from the wild energy. _'What the…?'_ Right at the core of Naruto's chakra network, he thought he saw the haunting image of a sinister beast that glowered in his direction, snarl lodged in place.

_'Seirei no Kaishun Higi: Kitsunebi…is a success…'_

Left in the wake of power laid a newly refreshed Uzumaki Naruto, now a carmine blaze of unrelenting chakra, ready and raring for combat. "I already know how this match will end, Neji," he confidently declared, frigid cobalt staring without remorse into pupil-less alabaster. "Three moves. That's all I'll need!"

_'Time for another go…'_ Naruto blurred away with his enhanced speed and flew through the hand seals for his patented Hyouton technique once more.

_Ne. Tori. Inu. Uma. Mi. Hitsuji. Inu._

_'Rat. Bird. Dog. Horse. Serpent. Ram. Dog.'_

**"Hyouton: Hyoumu no Jutsu!"**

The chilling Ice Release: Ice Fog Technique boiled to life around the ankles of the blond-haired jinchuuriki before the massive miasma wafted out and around the stadium floor once more. _'Time to set my plan into action, and I hope that this will earn enough appeal points for that promotion…'_ With the cold mist hanging about, and obscuring the Byakugan in the process, the heir to the Senju birthright summoned forth one final clone. _'Opening setup…'_ Naruto got into position to anticipate Neji's next move. _'Going up!'_ One copy launched the other high into the air with the aid of a cupped-hand boost.

The blinding fog almost induced a headache in the long-haired brunet as the chakra-enlaced substance poured all around. He could not see in the near-zero visibility. That only left him with only one solution to bat it away…

He was forced to use the Hakkeshou Kaiten again…just how Naruto wanted it.

_'Uma. U. Ushi. Mi. Tatsu. Saru.'_

_'Horse. Boar. Ox. Serpent. Dragon. Monkey.'_

**"Fuuton: Kazekiri!"**

The bold, gutsy shinobi began to plummet, picking up speed in the process.

XXXXXXXXXX

"…No way…" Izumo commented, mouth hanging slightly open.

"…He wouldn't…" Kotetsu stood equally flummoxed. He rubbed at the bandage across the bridge of his nose. "To try to break the ultimate defense of the Main Branch secret taijutsu? That kid's either asking for some pain…or he knows what he's doing."

"The lunacy of it all, Kotetsu. That kid's got a set of brass ones on him, for sure, and I think I can hear them clanging all the way up here." The shorter-haired ninja scratched his bandanna, chuckling at his own humor. "You don't think he'll pull it off, do you?"

"Knowing that Naruto, I fail to not believe a thing that kid can do."

"He made a believer out of you, then?" A sly grin made its way onto Izumo's features.

"I wouldn't count him out, now. He's been doing well with keeping his head clear and his temperament never seemed to waver." The shaggier-haired of the two shrugged in an ambivalent fashion. "He's a bit rough around the edges, but I'll give him the vote for a chuunin candidate if it comes down to it."

"Well," Izumo reasoned, "there's still a chance for him to show a better appeal in more rounds. He hasn't won me over, just yet. I mean, sure, he's got chakra and stamina that would make other, higher-ranked shinobi green with envy, but we need someone who is consistent, but willing to adapt."

He heard the squealing whine coming from the yellow-haired genin in the air. "You're just mad that he managed to stink-bomb your little corner of the office in the Academy. Admit it, Izumo."

A dark look crept over the special chuunin's countenance. "Don't remind me, Kotetsu…and didn't Naruto give you a few whoopee cushion treatments?"

_'Yep…'_ The shaggy black hair shook along with his head. _'He's still fuming over that…but I still find it very funny!'_ His grin never left his face as he shrugged. "I simply took the boy's pranks in stride, and you have to admire his creativity."

XXXXXXXXXX

"Banzai!"

Seeing the opportunity, the blond boy took it. Careening down with a screeching vortex enveloping his arm, Naruto positioned the pointed 'edge' of his Wind Drill at the axis of rotation—in this case, right on Neji, who spun like a top. The two jutsu connected into a stalemate for about two, solid seconds. The miniature, cyclonic funnel of shrieking wind started synchronizing with the revolutions per second and the directional spin of Neji's Revolving Heaven, which allowed the bewhiskered ninja to bore right into the impenetrable defense with the assistance of gravity. As the two techniques negated each other, Naruto reached down and yanked on Neji's head, stopping the boy from spinning around, unless he wanted to lose a few strands of his precious, flowing hair. That action promptly dislodged the armor-clad shinobi, who banged against the wall and disappeared with a pop of white vapor.

XXXXXXXXXX

"What's going on down there, Honorable Father?" Hanabi asked from her position, not really believing her eyes, either.

"It appears that…Uzumaki Naruto just penetrated the ultimate defense of our clan's lineage." Slowly, Hiashi rubbed at his temples. He could practically feel the vigilant, withering glares from the elders around the arena. He assumed they were beyond livid. _'This certainly bears concern…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Dazed, disoriented, and bewildered, Hyuuga Neji shook off the wobbling sensation brought upon by that blond rascal. Sadly, for him, his recovery took too long as a hand from the earth grabbed on his ankle and yanked him downward.

"Doton: Shinjuu Zanshu no Jutsu…a technique that my own sensei used against my teammate when we first took the genin-qualifying tests," Naruto lazily droned, a bored look on his face as he rose to the surface about two meters from where Neji's head poked out. He then calmly walked over to the immobile shinobi and whipped out a kunai from his pouch, digging the sharp end into the brunet's neck, which drew a small trickle of blood. "Yield, Neji. I don't want to do this."

"Impossible…" The slightly older ninja blinked once. "You…bested me in combat…"

"What were you expecting? I get tossed around like a rag doll only to come up from behind with a narrowly earned victory through sheer determination and guts?" The blond demon container laughed at that. "Hah! Maybe in another time, but this is the here and now. I told you I was going to kick your ass, and I delivered a can of it to your doorstep, along with a side-dish of 'Thank-You-May-I-Have-Another.'"

Neji only grumbled at that. Who was he fooling? This street urchin, like with the equally brash Kiba, kept the pace of the match in his favor, and ended up down in the dirt and looking up at him.

Pun very much intended.

Either way, he felt like a reverse-ostrich with his body put under the ground, instead of his head.

The hidden noble continued speaking, voice now audible and clear to the audience around him. "Never forget, Neji, that words like 'fate' and 'destiny' are not chains that bind us. No matter what anyone else thinks, we shape our own futures, because not only are we alive as human beings, but we also have the ability to make ourselves who we want to be through the efforts of our own hands. We can alter our paths as long as we stay tried and true to our dreams and reach for them with our hands wide open." His eyes narrowed a fraction. "That's the reason why you lost, Neji. You got so caught up in this whole destiny drivel to the point that you barely saw what was right in front of your eyes the whole time. You have the power to change the things around you, instead of moping around and running your mouth about how the world is unfair. Well, build a bridge and get over it, because I know I already have, and if you can't make the change for the better, then I will do it for you! The Hyuuga are blind, Neji." He removed the trowel from the boy's neck and stood upright, sky-blue eyes sparkling like carved jewels. "I will make them see." After giving the now-humbled Hyuuga prodigy a piece of his mind, Naruto walked off, only to get stopped in mid-step when he started hearing a slow clap…followed by another clap…and then, like grease in a deep-fryer, roaring applause enveloped the stadium.

Those claps, cheers, wolf-whistles and cat-calls were for him…

It had to take some time to let the reality of it sink in.

Once it finally clicked that they cheered for _him_, his exuberance burst forth with a lot of gusto. He dashed a lap around the arena, fatigue cast away, and caught a flower in his mouth for good measure.

_'I wonder if Hinata-chan was watching from the audience…'_ he reflected as he went to retrieve his pooped fox kit from the trees.

Neji, on the other hand, managed to get dug out of the hole in which Naruto placed him, groveling in defeat.

"I know you're okay, kid," Genma reassured as he helped dust off the young genin, "and I hope you learn a great lesson from this. One day, even a bird can be clever enough to use its beak to release itself from the cage. You see that your opponent has already done that and more." He directed Neji to the awaiting medics to check him for any injuries. "Go get yourself checked out, now."

With a pained grimace, the talented shinobi limped off to the medical corps when, to his surprise, his uncle, Hiashi, walked among them with what appeared to be carefully masked concern.

"Hiashi-sama?" Neji staggered toward him, standing at a loss for words.

The patriarch of the Hyuuga lineage inwardly sighed. He felt it necessary to inform his nephew of something he should have told him a long time ago…the truth…

XXXXXXXXXX

"Heh…he did it again…" Kiba grumbled from his position in the audience, right next to the Hyuuga maiden, who seemed to have fully recovered from her fight last month.

Hinata chuckled at her teammate's antics. "No hard feelings, Kiba-kun, but you kind of underestimated him."

The dog-using ninja sputtered. "You're taking his side over mine, Hinata?" He then pouted. "I'm hurt…" Akamaru whined, adding his say into the matter.

"D-Don't take it like that, Kiba-kun!" she protested in defense. "It's just that…"

Kiba snorted. "Heh…Well, it is obvious, anyway…"

"Eh?" The indigo-haired kunoichi blinked twice.

"How you feel about him? It's as transparent as glass, Hinata!"

"…" She twiddled her fingers, already uncomfortable with the breadth of uneasy silence. She felt eyes on her when she quickly stole a glance behind her, noting the cloaked, masked ninja lurking about like a silent specter. "Kiba, on your five o'clock position," she whispered in a low tone.

The seemingly floating ninja moved about like a ghost in the wind, putting his alabaster-furred puppy on edge, too. "The ANBU Black Ops? What are they doing here?" Did they know something that they, mere genin, did not?

Despite the hanging cloud of dread above them, Hinata looked down to the arena floor, once more, seeing her crush make a victory lap, flower caught between his teeth and smiling like the bright sunshine pouring down on them now.

She sighed, wishing to be a part of the celebration and rush her important person and tackle-hug him, but she felt that not only would it be embarrassing for her family, but it would also have been out of place and would only get in the blond ninja's way. Besides, it was his moment in which he relished and savored, after all, and she should respect him basking in the limelight of attention.

_'You make me want to try harder, Naruto-kun,'_ Hinata firmly resolved within her mind, _'and the foreign clientele and dignitaries seem to accept your power. I'm so proud of you. You did something I failed to achieve, but that only means I have to get stronger…to defend my own nindou…my own ninja way…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

With Ino and Tenten vigilantly listening in on their conversation, the two goofy ninja continued discussing their summation of Uzumaki Naruto.

"I'm telling you, Izumo, that Naruto's going places. He's taking his job as a ninja much more seriously than before," Kotetsu reasoned with a level head. "So what if he set up pranks? I like the kid."

The straight-haired brunet heaved a sigh and dragged it out. "…All right. He was impressive. I'll give him that much. He managed to execute elemental ninjutsu with frightening precision…almost like Hokage-sama in his prime…"

"There's a condition to that, isn't there?" Shaggy hair rustled into the air as Naruto's supporter shook his head again. "So skeptical, Izumo."

The dark-eyed shinobi rubbed an itch in his scalp through the bandanna. "But…it was done with calculating brute force. A chuunin has to be strong, yes, but not to the point of literally throwing around his weight for kicks."

"However, you could tell that Naruto went all out in that fight," his companion smoothly countered. "You can't argue with that."

"Oh, without question!" Izumo agreed.

"Then, what's the issue, here?"

For once, Izumo did not supply a rebuttal.

"So…" Ino spoke up out of the hanging silence, now that the crowd muted to a dull roar. "…Whiskers finally pulled off an upset win." Cyan eyes rounded on chocolate brown, which made her amend what she had uttered. "No offense, Tenten."

The bun-haired brunette next to her had nothing more to say. The match was over, and that Naruto character picked apart Neji's Byakugan like a child's plaything. "None taken…"

_'Uzumaki Naruto…'_ Tenten looked down at her hands, _'…soundly defeated the strongest of our sensei's genin cell…'_ She let loose a shaky breath. The weapons-mistress had a lot more ground to cover in her training regimen.

XXXXXXXXXX

Haku shifted the bundle of documents between her crossed arms and her bosom as she made rounds around the Hokage Tower. The brunette ambled at a sedate pace, reflecting on how she managed to find herself within the venerable Hokage's good graces.

Due to the lack of manpower that Konoha had under her protection, any help provided a huge boon. In addition, her intelligence, albeit limited, supplied some insight to unravel the secrets behind the Hidden Mist and the bloodline purges. Unfortunately, the ice-conjuring kunoichi's information was obsolete, since the situations drastically changed in a major upheaval by the time she and Zabuza-san left…

A melancholy look quickly passed her delicate facial features as she reflected on her past mentor; the one who gave her a purpose in life. Without him, she probably never would have left the Water Country alive, but in a body bag or put to rest in those desecrated lands marred with blood.

Then again, she managed to retain most of her sanity, according to her most recent psychological profile. Deep down, if she were honest with herself, had she lost her innocence to her former master's bloodlust and desire for carnage, then, in retrospect, she could not have been saved if she gave in to those urges. Sure, she soiled her hands with the blood of her ex-mentor's enemies, since that was her job, but she did so out of blind devotion. Her will to protect kept her grounded…and sane, in a way to rationalize it.

The brown-eyed girl shook her head, clearing out the memories of a forgotten yesterday.

She stood here, in Konohagakure, as one of the moving parts that kept the office duties in the Hokage's service in harmonic flow—the typical paper-pusher, if there was a label to that position. Due to her non-shinobi status, she had the option to serve Konoha, and seeing that her savior's home was here, she happily agreed without any hint of hesitation or hearing the second choice. Through the grueling exams and tests to see if she would never break or snap, her skills in combat and knowledge on the human anatomy edged out at the higher tiers of the Chuunin ranking. Surprisingly enough, her abilities placed her near the cusp of a Jounin, in terms of power potential—a great addition to the forces of the Hidden Leaf Village. Even though Zabuza-san praised that her power exceeded his own, that was merely a front. In fact, due to the amount of experience he had in fighting compared to hers, which was only six years, give or take, the Demon of the Hidden Mist eclipsed her clandestine career by about a decade.

"Ah, Haku-san," she heard an older ninja approach her as she rounded the twisting corridors. He sported the standard-issue Konoha shinobi attire, but what made him stand out—quite literally—was the upturned, gravity-defying hair akin to a certain Copy Ninja, but had dark hair like her with framed sunglasses that concealed his eyes from view. "Just the person I needed to see."

"Aoba-san, what brings you here?" The pristine face of the female ninja twisted into confusion, blinking twice.

"Hokage-sama wanted me to assign you to check up on the Barrier Team," the new arrival, one Yamashiro Aoba, informed his junior. "See if they need refreshments, chakra-boosting pills, or anything that will ease the strain required to support and fortify our borders for safety."

"I…understand…" she complied, suddenly feeling a tad queasy as she moved into a slight bow. It was either her nerves, or something did not settle well on her stomach from breakfast a few hours ago. "I will go right away."

The feeling of approaching dread loomed over her like a heavy weight on her shoulders as she walked closer and closer to the top floor, leading to the sealed-off chamber that held the Barrier Team.

In good confidence, she had been given the sealing sequence to unseal the door, leading into it. Sheaves of papers still in her firm grips, she formed a quick, ten-seal sequence, ending in the Seal of the Serpent. The end result caused the door to flash white prior to the light folding back like a quickly drawn curtain.

She turned the knob and pressed her frame into the entrance. What she saw made her drop the bundle of documents that were hugged tightly to her chest and put up a soft hand to her mouth.

_'Their faces…they're melted!'_ True to observation, Haku bore witness to distorted faces that were barely recognizable. She then turned to another corpse, and she did her best to stem the nausea from rising any further. A slithering snake protruded from the chest of a dead barrier-ninja and peered around, forked tongue lapping out for new scents and new morsels on which to snack. She thought she heard its sibilant rattle shake and sound off from within his chest cavity.

That was not the only serpentine critter. Another brown snake wrapped around a body before unhinging its jaw. Haku knew what was about to happen, so she slammed the door with thunderous force, thickly swallowing to keep down the bile that steadily clawed its way up her throat.

Haku of the near-extinct Yuki clan made a mad dash out of the Barrier Team's chamber to alert whoever was around, brown eyes frostily glinting in battle mode.

The Barrier Team…was dead, and that act of sabotage compromised the safety of the Village Hidden in the Tree Leaves.

Frantically rounding another curved corner, the younger kunoichi bumped into another one…literally. A mass of cleavage was all Haku saw before she slammed hard into the other older woman, who merely looked down, a set of beige, caramel-colored eyes meeting a pair of frigid, cocoa-brown.

Amethyst hair ruffled up and around as her head titled to the side. "You're…Haku, right?"

"Yes, Anko-san, and…we got trouble…" she panted between shaky breaths. She then grabbed Mitarashi Anko's rough digits and ran back to the scene of the crime. "No time to explain!"

The Special Jounin merely smirked and licked her lips in excitement. "Oh? I like surprises!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Temari of the Hidden Sand Village was not a happy camper.

For the longest time in this match, her reluctant opponent—a lazy-ass by the name of Nara Shikamaru—bought himself some more time by ducking into some of the available foliage surrounding the stadium floor. She had a nagging intuition that the pineapple-haired ninja contained a brain behind that lethargic demeanor. He was a lot smarter than for what she gave credit. His teammate barely endured three minutes, and now, this slacker managed to keep the battle at his own pace…just like that other blond shinobi when he trounced the betting horse, much to the consternation of the grumbling gamblers in the arena who now mourned the loss of their assets…

She shook her head of that vagrant thought. There was no way in hell that she would let her mind err. Keeping focus had to be her top objective when dealing with a fellow strategist like herself.

"How about you quit hiding, you coward?" she boomed, poking out her chest like she expected him to answer her call for battle.

Said unenthused boy longingly gazed up at the clouds from his meditative position, already planning the next sequence of moves to lure her into a feint, which would spring the trap. _'Man, this is so troublesome…'_

He shucked off his jacket and pulled out a kunai. _'Well, here goes nothing…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

The match between the two strategists lasted about five minutes after that. With the brunet deer-rancher leading his opponent to where he wanted, Shikamaru struck with a Kage Mane no Jutsu through the connected holes and latched onto Temari's shadow, effectively holding her in place. Unfortunately, for her, she never saw one of the twin craters with the giant folding fan blocking her view, hoping to distract the lazy-ass with a simple clone before tagging him with her patented Kamaitachi no Jutsu, just like what she did with his fat-ass of a teammate.

Now, she stood in a squatting position, matching that of her captor, with her hands clenched into the Seal of the Rat. She struggled against the hold of the jutsu, but it was to no effect.

"So…this was your plan all along, huh?" she managed to ground out through gnashed teeth.

"You just failed to use the environment to your advantage," Shikamaru muttered with a lazy shrug. "The two holes that Naruto made were connected. I simply used that and kept your focus in the sky to keep you from looking down. My shadow-stretching just acted as feints to keep you distracted from noticing your field position, too. Basic diversion skills, really."

Temari impotently growled. _'This slacker clown…managed to outmaneuver me?'_

"Well, I guess this is it…" The lethargic, cloud-watching shinobi began to walk, driving the dirty blonde to imitate him by means of his jutsu. The two met in front of the proctor of the exam, and, for kicks, he raised his hand to the sky, which made Temari stretch hers in a near-mirror image. After a period of silence, Shikamaru let loose one of the biggest, tired sighs known to man. "That's it. I'm done…"

All thoughts and chatter screeched to a grinding halt when _Nara Shikamaru_, of all people, who had the match in the bag, forfeited without any reluctance. It was soon followed by inquisitive and disbelieving whispers and murmurs.

"What?" Even his opponent had trouble processing that.

"Too troublesome…" he grumbled. "I'm almost out of chakra…and to think that I had the next two hundred moves planned out in my head. Oh, well…" Assuming his usually hangdog look, he walked off the stadium floor, leaving the audience, Genma and Temari in complete shock.

The brunet proctor almost dropped the senbon dangling from the corner of his mouth. "Um…the winner of the match via forfeit…is Temari…"

It sure as hell did not feel like a win, in the Desert Flower's opinion.

XXXXXXXXXX

Right before the headline match of the Chuunin finals, Namiashi Raidou felt a new presence to his right. Sure enough, it was Aoba, with a cool gaze etched onto his features.

Raidou frowned a bit, scar tissue twitching around his face. "What's wrong, Aoba?"

The spiky-haired ninja leaned closer to whisper into his ear, making the scarred ninja's eyes jump in size. "Are you sure?" With a silent nod from his compatriot, his mouth assumed a thin line. "I…see. Thank you for the new developments."

"Yep." Aoba sped off into the forest on watchful alert.

Feeling the burden of relaying the message, Raidou approached the sky box and back into the Hokage's presence. "Sir, may I have a word with you, away from Kazekage-sama?"

"One moment, Raidou," he whispered in a raspy fashion. "If you'll pardon me, I need to take care of some business."

"By all means, Hokage-dono," he pleasantly replied.

Hiruzen stood up and walked around the upper-level seats to the golden roof of the stadium. "We'll keep this in hushed whispers, so make it quick, Raidou."

"Um…sir," the short-haired brunet began, already feeling that the messenger was going to get shot, "we have…a bit of a situation…"

"Yes?" the Sandaime prompted, hoping for more elaboration.

"My lord, our barrier team…has been killed, and we have unquestionable proof that Orochimaru was behind it."

That feeling of trepidation crawled up the Hokage's spinal column. "…That means he's a little too close for comfort." The weighted meaning proved obvious, were it not for Hiruzen's quick eye-cut over to the press box luxury seats.

"Sir, your orders?" The carefully guarded intonation was tangible from a member of the Guard Platoon.

Seeing him made him think of a contingency plan. "Stay close, Raidou, but hurry up and summon Aoba back here on the double."

The younger ninja felt surprise that the Hokage meant business. "You don't mean…?"

"Yes," Hiruzen declared with crushing finality, "I want to get the special ops Guard Platoon unit by my side." He signaled down in the arena with a nudge of his head in the direction of the proctor. "Notify Genma, too, when the enemy makes his move. I'd much rather…have a more fitting venue, away from the civilians and potential clientele from abroad."

Raidou nodded in compliance. "Understood, Hokage-sama. I'll go at once." Before he broke away from his commanding officer, he glanced back. "Anything else, sir?"

The wizened Fire Shadow did not have to think long and hard for an answer. "Alert the ANBU…_all_ of them…"

Seeing one of his guardians dash off to scramble the forces for an impending attack, Hiruzen felt the need to inwardly sigh. _'So…my mistake has come back full circle, it seems…'_

He wondered, rather belatedly, as to how come his long-time rival, Shimura Danzou, did not make his power play to support Konoha. He felt the need to force him into action. Enough idling around!

In retrospect, confronting him only stirred the pot of animosity between the two…

_The Sandaime Hokage was a man on a mission. He hastily found the secret passages in and around Konoha's sewers, leading to his destination. Like a violent gale, Hiruzen's Kage regalia flapped around like an agitated peal of thunder on account of the echoes provided by the hollow infrastructure as he marched through the underground sewer system, knowing exactly where to go._

_His steely, coal-colored eyes landed on the appropriate door; leading to the man he sought out, Golden Hand brandished and ready for action._

_The aged Fire Shadow barged in and saw Danzou calmly sitting on a padded cushion._

_The Darkness of the Shinobi peered up from his brewing cup of jasmine tea, dispassionate facial features present. "Ah, Hiruzen…"_

_He was immediately cut off with a back-hand from the Professor, courtesy of the golden-embroidered ebony glove._

_After the stinging sensation now erupting on his face, Danzou took note of the mass amounts of glitter that exploded from the glove. How that happened always remained a mystery. "I see that you are upset over something," he casually remarked._

_Hiruzen almost blew smoke through his nose. "I suggest that you better do something with regard to the impending threat hanging above us."_

_The militaristic warmonger rubbed the raw side of his bandaged countenance. "So, your greatest sin comes back to haunt you," he slickly barbed. "That is something that _you _must handle, Hiruzen…alone…"_

_The Sandaime's eyes turned arctic. "I know we have never seen eye to eye, but do know your place. I am Hokage! I am in charge!"_

'Not for long, though…' _Danzou thought rather bitterly._

_"Konoha must stand tall, old friend and rival. I need your support…or else…" He let the threat trail off into thin, wispy air._

_"Or else…what?" He let a bit of snarky inflection ooze from his frame. "You expect me to bend to your authority like your brainwashed drones walking above ground?"_

_"My, my, pot," Hiruzen parried in this verbal joust, "say hello to the kettle." He heavily sighed, already growing weary of this tedious banter. "There was a reason why I took away the funding of your little pet project and your group of socially inept misfits. I should have made an example out of you for skirting the line of treason."_

_The shaggy-haired brunet allowed an indifferent snort escape his lips. "My word against yours, Hiruzen. If you try to expose me, then you'll only expose yourself. How will the people see that their 'God of Shinobi' is nothing more than a flawed human being just like the rest of us?"_

_"…Your insolence sickens me, Danzou. Where have we gone wrong?" He shook his head in disgust and was about to leave before he stopped. "I expect full cooperation and assistance in case things take a turn for the worst."_

_Hiruzen's political rival swiftly changed the subject. "…What about the Kyuubi brat? How will you have the courage to tell him of your greatest blunder regarding him? His mother, missing, all because of an intricate lie from a close family friend…and with the seal of approval from…well, you?" He bridged his fingers in front of his face as a sole eyebrow rose up in subtle haughtiness, feeling the satisfaction of twisting the edge of the blade deeper into the Hokage's image of preserving his dignity._

_The grip on the brass handle loosened as the Third Fire Shadow's face twitched into a grimace. "…I will atone for that in the next life, _if _I don't survive before we can find her. Either way, there was far more to it than just those logistics."_

_Danzou knew that his logic was ironclad, since it seemed that Hiruzen had nothing else left to dispute. "…Your move, _Hokage-sama_."_

_"I will warn you now, Shimura Danzou," the graying-haired veteran dangerously uttered. "Leave the child to flourish in the guiding hands of whom I entrusted to him." His eyes narrowed, murderous intent flooding the lower levels of Konohagakure like a vast pressure wave, in tandem with his visage growing even flintier, like the carving of his bust on the Hokage Rock Monument. "There's still the matter with Itachi-kun, though, where you must face your demons, too. What was that saying again?" he rhetorically asked, as he rounded his sharp eyes on the single, visible eye of his former comrade in the First Great Shinobi War. "Ah, yes…"_

_The shadow of the war machine that Hiruzen used to be emerged like a caged beast. The tone in his voice would have made lesser ninja piss their pants. "Tread carefully, lest you awaken slumbering giants…" He found the polished metal on the doorknob reassuring after cutting down the other man's sturdy ego. "Good day to you, Danzou…"_

'…and may we _never_ meet again…under these circumstances…'

He hoped to any kami out there that he got through to his stubborn political rival. He prayed that the roots of the great tree provided support by tangling up the problem as the leaves scattered around to smother it…for good.

XXXXXXXXXX

"…I'm disappointed, Shikamaru. You had that girl in the palm of your hand!" Naruto complained as he met up with the shadow-slinging deer-rancher in the breezeway of the corridor, fox kit hopping around his legs.

Slowly walking alongside his comrade, Naruto's lazy friend shrugged and heaved a long, dragged-out sigh. He seemed to do that a lot, as of late. "It was too troublesome, and I'm almost out of chakra. I really didn't feel like fighting in the first place, until you shoved me over the waiting area." Well, that was not the whole truth. He felt something in the air. It was palpable to the senses. To the Nara heir, energy conservation overrode his logic.

The blond genin chuckled. "Oh, heh…My bad."

"By the way, that fog of yours…" That caused the blue-eyed genin to stop.

"Hm?"

Shikamaru turned to his friend. "Was that Hyouton?"

The unpredictable noisy ninja hesitantly nodded. "You want to ask about the…other form of ninjutsu, even though that would put us in jeopardy?"

"Don't need to," Shikamaru responded. "Orders are orders, and I kind of figured that you managed to get back that power you seem to have lost with the training over the month, anyhow."

"Nothing seems to get past you, huh?"

"Unlike you?" the pineapple-haired genin gibed back.

"Hey!" Naruto whined. "I'll have you know that I can easily improvise and make things up as I fight on the battlefield."

"And for what? Risk getting chewed out by the Hyuuga when all this blows over?"

"Hey, I spoke what was on my mind out there!" the bewhiskered ninja defended.

"Suit yourself," Shikamaru muttered. "Your prerogative."

Doshaburi whined when he felt the intent to kill around the corner.

"Something's up," Naruto relayed to his companion, dragging him down in a crouch around the corner of the staircase. His ears must have deceived him, for he thought he heard…sifting sands. "Oh, no…"

"What is it, Naruto?" the lethargic ninja hissed under his breath.

"It's that redhead from Suna," he answered, trying to strain his acute hearing. "I hear two other people trying to talk him down from facing Sasuke."

**"Ah, so it is what I thought…"** he heard the fox bite out in his mindscape.

_'Thought what, fox?'_

**"That kid…He harbors my fellow brethren, the Ichibi…"** The Kyuubi showed his humongous fangs in a jeering smile. **"I'll gladly humble him and show him his place as the weakest of the nine…"**

Muffled screams permeated the length of the hallway before a squishing, crunching sound silenced them for good. The grainy silica roared like a sentient being amid the haunting silence before it retreated into the kid's sandy gourd.

Gaara moaned, a splitting headache pounding under his skull. "I'm sorry, Mother, for giving you bad blood, but you shall get your fair share when I kill Uchiha Sasuke…"

"…Is he talking to himself?" Naruto wondered aloud, but out of the deranged shinobi's earshot.

"I don't know, but if it weren't for you stalling me by talking to you, then that could've been me…" Shikamaru intoned, not really believing what he saw.

Both shinobi gave the approaching redhead a wide berth as he walked past them to the arena below. The host of the Shukaku slowed his steps as he trudged past the host of the Kyuubi. "After I feed your teammate to Mother," he then turned his lifeless, pale-jade eyes on stunned cerulean, "you're next, Uzumaki Naruto…"

So, no wonder he felt some familiarity with the kid who threatened his life. Those eyes…reminded him of what he could have become; a sheer reflection in the mirror if he had no one in his life to accept and acknowledge him. Those eyes held a hollow soul, and the void slowly ate away at his mind.

Putting up a strong bravado, blue eyes narrowed to slits in a display of power, much to Shikamaru's surprise that suddenly affixed itself to his features. His dominating aura remained focused and steadfast as the blond crossed arms over his chest, celeste-toned orbs gleaming despite the absence of available light. "For the love of my friends, I will crush you, should I _ever_ have to face you in combat."

Gaara felt the beast within him claw at his mind in anticipation, forcing him to clutch his head again. "I will kill you…to prove my existence…" Visibly shaking, the youngest of the Kazekage's children stumbled to the arena for his match.

"Sasuke's in for it, now," Shikamaru mentioned after the strained quiet hung over the present company.

"He'll be all right…I hope…"

"…You visited the betting stands, didn't you?" his friend dully questioned.

"…Just thought I'd test my luck. That's all." Besides, the money at stake was huge! He could use some of that.

Shikamaru closed his eyes and grunted. "…Troublesome."

"You said it…"

XXXXXXXXXX

Just like with that Misumi character, Sasuke's onyx eyes measured up the secret weapon of the Sand, who more than lived up to his name, given the nature of the rumors. His mind drowned out the loud shouts of his name from the spectators seated above.

He half-expected the other kid to barge in on his training with Kakashi, but it seemed that it was a matter of missed timing. The day off from training helped the last of the Uchiha clan to sort through his personal issues and the obstacles set before him. It all boiled down to a few simple questions.

_How far was he willing to go for power?_

He had something to prove to Itachi, his target. The older ninja outclassed him in almost every way, and it seemed as though the path in which Itachi tried to force him to tread blinded him from something else. It was as if…Itachi wanted to be the focus of all that hatred; to become the scapegoat of ire and resentment…just like the dobe…but for what, he had not an inkling of an idea.

An itch from around the nape of his neck caused him to distractedly scratch the seal over the cursed seal.

The one-day break also made him reconsider the scope of his outlook.

_Should he invest time in rebuilding the Uchiha before going after Itachi, should the path of vengeance absorb and claim him in the long run?_

Having thought on that, it made sense. Should something befall him, then why not have a surefire plan and impregnate a few of his fan girls, as annoying as they were?

_'Eh…maybe not…'_ He desired someone of strong pedigree; someone who provided strong-enough genes to perpetuate his lineage. Not having her fawn all over him would be a better boon.

_"When plotting revenge, be sure to dig two graves—one for your enemy, and the other for yourself,"_ he recalled his eccentric teacher's words. _"Hatred is a dangerous thing in this world. It's what causes all of us to kill each other all for the power of money. Now, justice, on the other hand, is a more noble goal to work toward, Sasuke. Uncover the reasons why Itachi did what he did."_

_Justice…or revenge?_

The two words walked a fine line, hand in hand. One could easily blend or blur into the other at the drop of a hat, all due to the intent driving them.

He saw those pallid green eyes staring unemotionally in his direction—a shell of a human being borne by mindless mass-murder. Would that devil become him, if he were to follow the path of his prey? What awaited him at the end of the path to revenge?

"Uchiha Sasuke…" the flat monotone of his opponent cut over his warring thoughts. "…I shall kill you…to prove my worth that I am alive."

"Are you crazy?" the raven-haired heartthrob asked, really not fishing for an answer. "I have an objective to meet, and you're just nothing but another obstacle to prove my mettle."

"…A conflict of interest, then," Gaara uttered without any excitement.

"Simmer down, boys," Genma chimed in as he waltzed up. "Let's go through the formalities, shall we?" No response. "I guess that's a yes, then." The senbon-chewing man cleared his throat. "Match number three: Gaara of Sunagakure versus Uchiha Sasuke of Konohagakure!" He swiped down his hand in a chopping gesture before backing away. "Begin!"

Not missing a beat, the Ichibi's container opened up with the cork popping off his large peanut of a gourd, the eerie, twisting sands pouring out and taking on a form of independence before lunging at the expectant Uchiha.

Crimson bled from his pupils as the Sharingan spun into view, now matching with a dual-set of tomoe. With a sharper vision, the Uchiha scion rolled out of the way of the sand stream in the nick of time.

_'So, his range is indeterminate…'_ Sasuke rolled into a swift dash to close the distance. _'He can use and bend sand to his will, in addition to having a compacted armor of that stuff all around his body.'_ That left his options extremely limited.

Glassing the sand was close to impossible, he considered as he leapt over another arm of the grainy substance. With chakra bolstering the already staggeringly high melting point, that restricted him to his ace-in-the-hole of a Katon ninjutsu that he used in the Forest of Death. _'The drawback from that, I can tell, will hinder me and leave me crippled.'_ He had adrenaline for fuel against Orochimaru, but…could he do it again, even though that could leave him all but a sliver of chakra in his system?

He also had some special wildcats at his beck and call, after striking a deal with the feline he summoned, who called himself Kiyoshi. _'Kiyoshi…really?'_ Paradoxical naming system with fur coloration and questionable gender issue aside, the lone wolf of Team Seven did not feel like cutting loose and reveal all of his trump cards. _'Well, I guess it's time to put that conditioning to the test…'_

Before Gaara's stunned eyes, his opponent blurred from out of sight with a quick rush of speed, past his contorting sands and leveled a solid right hook to his jaw. His head rocked back from the blow as his Mother's sand cushioned him when he stumbled and fell in her delicate embrace.

Meanwhile, Sasuke shook off the tingling sensation. It felt like hitting a brick wall! "Huh…Built to withstand anything, eh?" He glanced around the audience for his inspiration, and saw the green-clad ninja look at him with a critical eye. Giving him a protruding thumb in the older shinobi's direction, which was much to Rock Lee's shock, the brooding brunet raced forward, and firing on all cylinders, began to ignite himself on fire. He became a blazing streak of determination as he gunned for the unsuspecting jinchuuriki of the Sand. "Let's see if you can stop this!"

**"Katon: Nenshou no Jutsu!"**

XXXXXXXXXX

Maito Gai stood by his fellow compatriot, the cool and hip Hatake Kakashi as they took note on the similar styles between their two students.

Curious, fuzzy eyebrows shot up to the man's hairline as he witnessed an exuberant display of youthful power of zigzagging around the range of the Suna kid's sand and not getting tagged. "I see that your hip student gave credit where credit was due," the other spandex-wearing ninja cheerily intoned, "but I do have some concerns with grinding friction and producing fire around his body. He could burn himself if he travels too fast. Believe me: I would know more than anyone about that."

"He takes calculated risks, with high returns," the ashen-haired veteran noted when Sasuke bodily careened into Gaara with enough force to send him skidding back. "We're still getting our worth with how we train our students. See how it pays off."

"…I am surprised that you are having an actual conversation with me, for once," Gai admitted.

"Hm? You say something, Gai?" The eye-smile indicated that he jested.

The Prideful Green Beast of Konoha pursed his lips before belting out a booming bellow. "Very funny, my eternal rival!"

_'Gai and his antics…gotta love them…'_ Kakashi could only shake his head. "He's softening up Gaara. Testing the waters, in a way."

"Oh? So, you did not use his Sharingan to replicate Lee's speed?"

"Not at all. I had special training to boost his quickness. Let's just say that I threw everything at him…"

"…Including the kitchen sink?" He really had to wonder if he resorted to that method.

"Yes, even that, Gai," the Copy Ninja confirmed.

"…I still wonder where you stash that thing."

"Heh. Don't worry…We all got secrets." His exposed eye sparkled with mirth.

XXXXXXXXXX

"…Wow." Sakura had to take off her little, green hood to really witness her crush's speed and agility. A burning streak across the dirt below, he dodged his way out of the paws of sand trying to hold him down. In turn, the dark-haired Uchiha, now a zooming spirit of fire, checked the homicidal Suna-nin in the gut like a fast-moving ball bearing in a game of pachinko. "He really worked hard, didn't he, Naruto?" she asked, trying to get a rise of the strangely silent boy beside her.

"He has," he conceded, "but fighting that Gaara kid requires another level of tactics."

"How so?"

"I'll have to tell you later, since exposing him…would expose me, too," he cryptically replied.

"…Is it because of the red chakra you and Dosha-chan used when you fought Neji…and with Snake-Face?" Sakura took a stab at the mysterious blond right by her side. She was supposed to confide in him, seeing that they were teammates, but the answers from Uzumaki Naruto did not seem forthcoming. Even he had skeletons in closet.

"Yes," he verified with a guarded edge in his tone as he saw Sasuke spring back from Gaara, who appeared to be generating sand by the bucketful and forming a dome around him. "It is a burden that nine individuals on this planet must carry…to keep the balance."

Sakura saw the raw emotion from his eyes. It was like she got a glimpse of the boy behind the false façade. _'Naruto…'_

**"Senpai…"**

XXXXXXXXXX

The Uchiha scion confidently thought that keeping the Suna-nin before him off balance by zipping around the field as a hard-to-strike target turned out to work well, all things factored into it.

However, another roadblock managed to find its way to the forefront, and that was the redhead's cocooning himself in a sphere of sand…

_'And what's with that floating eye?'_ Sasuke wondered as he bounded back to the wall, sticking his feet to the cool concrete. _'That's…kind of bizarre…'_

Keeping his calm, he concocted a plan to, for one, blind that eye that seemed to monitor his every move, and two, penetrate that wall of sand and not get gelded. He still had enough chakra for one, strong burst of a Katon jutsu and a technique Kakashi taught him, on the pain of punishable death were he to ever turn it against a comrade.

He began the sealing sequence, building the chakra within his system.

_I. Inu. Mi. Uma. Ushi. Mi. Hitsuji. Ne. U. Saru. Inu. Tora._

_'Boar. Dog. Serpent. Horse. Ox. Serpent. Ram. Rat. Hare. Monkey. Dog. Tiger.'_

The onyx-haired ninja bucked back, taking in a sharp breath and exhaled.

**"Katon: Jouka no Jutsu!"**

The churning fire brightly burned as the dazzling, blue conflagration screeched in the form of a gigantic firebird as it headed straight for the levitating (and creepy) eye. The widespread wings of the phoenix-like entity hummed in delight as it soared, white eyes glinting like the sun.

Gaara could practically feel the heat before it reached his sand-conjured eye and built up a wall of sand to protect it. For a few seconds, the sand and sapphire flames battled in an endless tug-of-war.

It was just what Sasuke needed to distract his opponent from his main goal to end the battle.

The heir to the Sharingan dexterously flipped through three hand seals.

_Ushi. U. Saru._

_'Ox. Hare. Monkey.'_

He gripped his left arm with his right as the sound of an angry chatter of birds flickered to life in his stretched-out palm. The energy emitted appeared like a glimmer of hope to all who bore witness to it.

Not wasting precious time, Sasuke made a beeline for the distracted Gaara, who strained to hold up the power of the mighty roar of the Sacred Fire Technique to protect his third eye. The zippy shinobi formed a scar that tore along the length of the wall as a demonstration of power. He was not joking around.

"I spy with my little eye…" he started to say, voice rising in steady volume, lightning-charged palm held back for striking, "…your defeat!"

The chirping of frantic birds en masse grew louder as the brooding brunet picked up velocity.

XXXXXXXXXX

Somewhere up in the arena, Hatake Kakashi rubbed at his mask, wondering how come his boys kept stealing pages from his book on how to act detached and snarky against their opponents. _'I should get that patented…'_

"You taught him the _Chidori_?" Now, Gai appeared alarmed by that startling revelation. "And to think that _I_ was the reckless one to give Lee permission to teach Sakura-san the Eight Gates."

"I clearly laid it out to Sasuke before I taught him that jutsu," the Copy Ninja alleviated for the self-proclaimed hotheaded hero. "He needed all the help he could get for this fight."

_'Besides,'_ he added as an afterthought, _'I still have Naruto to run damage control, if things do go down south from here on out…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

The Chidori struck home, past the grainy pupa of sand and right into the side of the ninja inside the silicate globe.

For a second, a taut stillness permeated the arena as the spectators watched, with bated breath, on the outcome.

Gaara's voice, sounding faint—distant, even—broke it. "What is this red stuff? Is this…blood? My…blood!" He panted in fear. No one managed to break through his armor of sand.

The feeling of pain felt foreign to him, but he let loose a howling wail that sent chills running up and down Sasuke's spine. He quickly dislodged his arm from the sand just before it started to make a grab at him again.

"What the hell?" He skidded to a halt and examined that his arm still remained attached to his body, thank the heavens, but the air hitched in his throat when he saw a yellow pupil, forged into a diamond shape, over black sclera, balefully glared at him with unrelenting malice.

XXXXXXXXXX

Now mingled with the crowd as an unassuming, plump bystander, Kabuto finished the string of hand seals to keep the lesser citizens off guard, once Gaara began to transform. It was a delicate procedure, and he had to synchronize his genjutsu to slowly induce sleep within the populace.

They would never see them coming.

XXXXXXXXXX

Naruto started to suddenly yawn. "Man, I'm starting to feel…sleepy…" His blue eyes fluttered shut as he fell to the ground.

**"…You never were good at pinpointing genjutsu, boy."** The deadpanned expression the fox displayed looked out of place on his menacing visage. He shook his head and sighed. **"That will come later."**

_'Wait…these feathers…genjutsu!'_ Sakura formed the Seal of the Ram and channeled her chakra against the nature of the illusory technique.

**"You know that nagging feeling, right, Soto-chan?"** her Inner Will delicately asked.

_'Yeah, and this is one of them?'_

**"'Afraid so."**

XXXXXXXXXX

"Just as I figured…" Kakashi lazily remarked as he witnessed the populace in the arena fall into the sandman's embrace. "It's begun…"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N:** I think this should be enough for this chapter. Development is in full swing for the next update, so the following installment should be out soon, and it's probably going to be another monster. I really don't know how I manage to just peg out these behemoths, so don't ask me…heh. I suppose you can expect frequent updates on a monthly basis for this story, from here on out, real life schedule notwithstanding. On that note, I also plan to update my other stories before the end of this year, in addition to a possible pet project of mine on the backburner that might get released at the start of the 2012 lineup. We'll see until then. There are still some kinks and knots to work out over that, so, again, if I post up another story, I'm testing out said pilot, just like with _Limit Breaker_. If you are interested, then feel free to drop me a message or two. I promise I won't bite.

Regarding updates, I'm also in the…somewhat tedious process of smoothing out past chapters, to make sure that they are concurrent, up to date, and ironed out pertaining to potential plot holes, continuity errors, fanon-removal and what have you.

**Before I finish out for this chapter's AN, I ask that you leave me a review. I'm pretty sure that, among the over 1100 alerts I have for this story; I have many readers creeping around in the background and behind the scenes. Where are you all? Drop me a line and show me you got a pulse! And yes, I'm pointing you out. Show me some love! Let me know what you think! =)**

Anyway, I don't have much on which to comment, this time around. Well, maybe one thing…

Minato taught three of his personal guards the Hiraishin…I'm at a loss for words on what to think on that shoehorned ret-con, to be totally honest with myself. I know that the third ninja is an unnamed shinobi, but, for all intents and purposes, I'm using Aoba for this, since he's readily available. Please, don't snipe me for twisting canon on that. Who knows how many other ninja are part of the Hokage's Guard Platoon, and how many know the technique?

Nevertheless, I'd like to give props to my go-to fellows for this update: **Arashi the Solar Phoenix, weixuan18, EliadS**

After the amount of reception I got last chapter, only one person managed to crack, at most, three of the Easter eggs I sprinkled in there. Other than that, a small handful picked out about two, so, I shall give commendations for those who picked them out (sorry for those who only jotted down one Easter egg, but tough break): **NightShade The Perfect One, yukicrewger2, T-Biggz**

What were they, you might ask? Well…in order of appearance:

**One: Mr. T reference, uttered by Orochimaru ("I'd pity the fools…") – Yeah, very embedded and hard to spot, there.**

**Two: Cabbage Merchant – Avatar: The Last Airbender (intertwined with the chase scene with Sakura and Kuroake…poor guy…)**

**Three: A reference to the hit song, "S&M" by Rihanna ("I wonder if chains and whips excite her…")**

**Four: A reference to _Archer_, an animated show on FX (Come on…just the tip…)**

**Five: Xerxes' messenger from the iconic meme over the Web – 300 ("This is blasphemy…This is madness!")**

Like I mentioned, some were pretty obscure; others, blatantly obvious.

**Along those lines, I implanted…_six_ Easter eggs this time. Call the Easter Bunny, because I'm swiping his basket! Again, see if you can spot them. As per the usual, you point out at least _two_; you will be recognized in the next installment.**

On that note, ladies and gentlemen, take it easy, enjoy your day (or night), **LEAVE A REVIEW** and I'll see you all later. And before I give you a send-off for this chapter, there's an _omake_ at the bottom, as part of my promise from the last chapter.

Okay, now, DHO, out!

_War has erupted like a long-dormant volcano within the Hidden Leaf! Morals, beliefs and ethics will be tested as the denizens of Konohagakure defend their home from intruding forces. The tree must stand tall, no matter the cost! There's no time for being shell-shocked; you all have a job to do, heroes!_

_Jikai (Next time…), on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Invasion! Heroes Also Fall_

**Romaji/Jutsu Guide**

**Bunke Juinjutsu**: Cadet Branch Cursed Seal Technique, also given the alternate moniker of the "Caged Bird Seal"

**Otogakure**: Hidden Sound

**Ossan**: slang for "old man"

**Kawarimi no Jutsu (Substitution Technique **or** Body Replacement Technique)**: E-rank ninjutsu; switches body with another nearby object (Narutopedia)

**Hyouton: Hyoumu no Jutsu (Ice Release: Ice Fog Technique)**: D-rank supplementary ninjutsu; user creates a lighter but chilling fog to reduce vision to zero visibility; has the potential to disable or blind even a doujutsu-wielder; akin to **Kirigakure no Jutsu (Hidden Mist Technique)** (created)

**Rasenshou (Spiraling Palm)**: B-rank ninjutsu/taijutsu variant; inverted incomplete Rasengan that encompasses the user's hands, creating miniature spiral-like drills; this jutsu works well with causing muscle/ligament damage as well as minor chakra disruption, if the amount of chakra is concentrated enough; may cause target to fly back a bit, spiraling along the way (created)

**Hakkeshou Kaiten (Eight Trigrams Palm Revolving Heaven)**: unknown-rank, declassified kekkei genkai-style taijutsu maneuver; this secret taijutsu is orally passed down among the Main House of the Hyuuga clan; to compensate for the seemingly unknown blind spot, the user is taught to expel chakra from all the tenketsu in his/her body, creating an energy-rich dome to parry projectiles and toss away oncoming attackers (Narutopedia)

**Fuuton: Toppuu Kaiten (Wind Release: Gusty Revolving Heaven)**: B-rank offensive/defensive ninjutsu; similar to the Hyuuga-style **Hakkeshou Kaiten (Eight Trigrams Palm Revolving Heaven)**, but infused with wind-type chakra and can be performed in mid-air; outer rims along the barrier are corrugated, meaning that anyone or anything within striking range will be horribly cut or blown away, save for the user (created)

**Kitsune no Hijutsu: Kitsunebi Endan (Secret Art of the Foxes: Will-o'-the-Wisp Round Shots**, literally **Fox-Fire Flame Bullets)**: unknown close- to mid-range hijutsu; this secret art allows Doshaburi to fire rounds of small, gaseous fireballs from his muzzle; the ordained fox starts off with firing off one blast, and with more practice and training, the number of fireballs, velocity, and power will gradually increase; kitsune-equivalent to **Katon: Housenka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique)** (created)

**Suiton: ****Suiryuudan no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Dragon Missile Technique)**: B-rank offensive mid- to long-range ninjutsu; creates a serpentine dragon made of water to attack the opponent; the drawback is that there has to be a body of water nearby (Narutopedia)

**Doton: Daichi Kobu no Jutsu (Earth Release: Vast Land Swelling Technique)**: Low C-rank offensive close- to mid-range ninjutsu; with the aid of earth-based chakra, the user can "move" the earth in any direction at will to simply block or strike an opponent (created)

**Seirei no Kaishun Higi: Kitsunebi (Spiritual Rejuvenation Ritual: Fox-Fire, **alternatively known as **Will-o'-the-Wisp)**: Unclassified special ritual that only the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Youko (Nine-Tailed Demon Fox) can perform; in essence, the chakra coils are replenished by expelling youki (demonic energy) if the user is out of chakra and forces open all closed tenketsu; this is usually preceded by hovering, ghastly flames falling back into the Kyuubi's vessel; however, the setback is that it is moderately painful when reopening the closed pressure points (created)

**Fuuton: Kazekiri (Wind Release: Wind Drill)**: B-rank offensive close-range ninjutsu; based on the initial principles of the **Rasengan (Spiraling Sphere)** and **Gentle Fist**-style of tenketsu chakra-expulsion, the user expels chakra from the points on his or her arm to create a funnel of energy encased around the forearm region; with advanced elemental control, the user can add in his or her particular chakra nature into the drill; in Naruto's case, it is his primary elemental affinity—wind (created)

**Doton: Shinjuu Zanshu no Jutsu (Earth Release: Double Suicide Decapitation Technique)**: D-rank supplementary short-range ninjutsu; the user, emerging from the ground below the target area, pulls down (or possibly swaps places with) the opponent so that only his/her head is above ground (Narutopedia)

**Kamaitachi no Jutsu (Sickle Weasel Technique)**: C-rank offensive short- to mid-range technique; by freely manipulating the gale brought forth from her Giant Folding Fan, the many air currents collide and create vacuum pockets, severing the foes Temari has trapped with slashing winds; this technique has enough power to lift an opponent off his or her feet (Narutopedia)

**Ichibi (no Shukaku)**: One-Tailed Shukaku: a tailed-beast and wind-spirit elemental; currently sealed within Sabaku no Gaara; lowest in terms on the power gradient of bijuu

**Kiyoshi**: derived from either the kanji for "White" (白) or "Cleanse/Purify" (清), he is Sasuke's personal wildcat familiar seen in the last chapter; ironically enough, despite his unisex name, his fur, for the most part, is black

**Katon: Nenshou no Jutsu (Fire Release: Combustion Technique)**: C-rank supplementary ninjutsu; user is enveloped in a dazzling blaze, due to the considerable burst of speed that grinds against the friction in the air; provides an amplifier to other Katon ninjutsu (created)

**Chidori (One Thousand Birds)**: A-rank offensive short-range ninjutsu; a large amount of chakra is concentrated into the user's arm; the nature and shape of the chakra takes on the form of electricity; combined with the high speed at which the user travels and the ball of electric chakra in the user's hand, it creates the distinct sound of many birds chirping; in short, it is a "kid-brother" version of **Raikiri (Lightning Cutter) **(Narutopedia)

—.o.0.0.o.—

**_Special Omake_**_: Haku's Hidden Power_

**_I'll warn you ahead of time: slight yuri (shoujo-ai) as you read on…_**

Haku came up empty once she realized that she had run out of chakra paper. Well, she could not say that; rather, she did not have any on her person.

Period.

"So, what now, Haku-neesan?" Sakura asked from the hanging silence.

Suddenly, a hint of red dusted the Hyouton kunoichi's cheeks as she fumbled with her painted fingernails. "I…know a way to figure out your chakra nature."

The rosette-haired girl blinked once, actually trying to absorb what her temporary mentor uttered. "You mean, without the need for chakra paper?"

If she looked in the mirror, her face would have easily assumed the hue of a cherry. "Yes…"

"Hey, are you feeling okay?" Green eyes burned alight with worry as she pressed her hand against the older girl's forehead. "You're not sick, right?"

"No, no, I'm fine," Haku deflected, keeping the heat rising to her face. _'Is it really worth it, though?'_ What would entail afterward would only make things a bit…awkward…

"Oh…" That made the budding female ninja relax a slight amount. "So, how can you find out my chakra nature?"

"…Close your eyes, first," she commanded, looking around to see if anyone eavesdropped. Luckily, her senses picked up no one.

Sakura did as she was told. Her lids closed shut as her breathing grew steady and normal. "What's next?" She sensed a growing eagerness line the pit of her stomach, really wanting to uncover her elemental chakra nature. She did not want to be outdone by the headstrong boys on her squadron.

Haku's next move took the younger kunoichi by complete surprise when she felt a pair of soft lips mashed up to hers. Her emerald eyes almost bugged out when she saw her tutor, eyes half-lidded, holding her in place by the back of her head at the embrace…and the really strange moment. _'She's kissing me!'_

By the gods, she wanted her first kiss to be from Sasuke-kun, damn it!

_'But…on the other hand…'_ Sakura wondered in a curious stupor, returning the passion with matching fervor, _'…it feels kind of nice…'_

Was she not supposed to find out her chakra nature?

Haku, on the other hand, tasted a rich, humble and worldly flavor from the younger girl's saliva. Then, she broke off the lip-locking, leading Sakura to mewl like a kitten and flutter off to another lofty height.

"Haku…neesan?" Sakura stood on cloud nine, without a care in the world. It was weird, yes, but… "Why'd you stop?"

"I already figured it out, Sakura-san." A light pink dusted across the ice-conjuring kunoichi's cheeks, this time. "My special ability allows me to 'taste' the natural element flowing through your body via saliva exchange."

"Didn't know you were a fantastic kisser…" The jade-eyed girl huskily murmured.

**"…Wow…"** Even her inner ego had nothing to say, despite the fact that Soto-chan's mind flew up into the skies above. **"You might want to listen to her…"**

The brunette blushed at the compliment. "Um…thank you, Sakura-san." She cleared her throat. "By the way, from what I sensed, your chakra nature happens to be…"

Haku's low voice got drowned out by a dull roar of wind as it swept by the training area.

**Omake A/N: Do bear in mind that this part is NOT canon. I repeat: this part is NOT canonical to the TFD storyline. That is all.**

**By the way, did you _really_ think I'd reveal Sakura's chakra nature here? Guess again! =P**


	20. Invasion! Heroes Also Fall

**_Chapter Twenty_**_: Invasion! Heroes Also Fall_

Tsuchi Kin grew worried when she heard two distinct puffs of smoke from where she sat, by the kitchen table. That must have meant Naruto's bunshin popped, meaning that he unexpectedly dispelled them…or he got knocked out.

The brunette's intuition leaned itself more on the latter speculation, meaning that the sneak-attack invasion had just begun, if the tight knot in the pit of her stomach was any indication.

As the senbon-bearing kunoichi sat there, she actually had some more time to mull over her allegiance to the Hidden Sound or to the Hidden Leaf. Kin reflected on how inept and in the dark her team had been placed when it came to Orochimaru-sa—Orochimaru acting of his own accord and planted a seal on Sasuke…

Then again, she did notice the swelled area around Naruto's neck in the likeness of the snake-charmer's Cursed Seal of Heaven, but how he managed to overcome the effects, let alone destroy it completely, were left to the kunoichi's outlandish imagination. _'He's stronger than everyone thought,'_ she surmised as she chewed on her lip in worry. _'I…have to do something…'_

She realized now that, as the last person of Team Dosu, she was the throwaway ninja; the sacrificial lamb thrown to the wolves to be consumed for Otogakure's leader. The veil of illusion had been cast aside by the person around whom she began to hover, much to his other roommate's consternation.

Kin, for once in her short time on this world, thought for herself for once and resolved to gain Naruto's trust—and to an extent, the trust of his comrades, which might prove difficult, but she had to weasel her way into the stadium without being spotted by anyone, until she made herself aware to the blond ninja who, in a sense, rescued her from a meaningless end.

She stood up, walked to her rucksack resting by the side of the love seat, and fished around for a map of Konoha, ready to hatch a plan of her own.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sarutobi Hiruzen stoically looked on as the spectators in the audience slumped over in their seats. "I expected as much…Orochimaru…" he all but growled out when he cut his eyes over to the Kazekage, who started to chuckle in hisses.

"Looks like I have been discovered," the Snake Wizard sibilantly intoned, his eyes shifting to a sickly yellow color and narrowing to slits. "I knew you were sharper than you allow yourself to show, Sarutobi-sensei." Soon after, the Legendary Ninja cast off his Wind Shadow cloak, simply because he had been found out and no longer needed it.

"You have no idea, my wayward student," the Professor cryptically retorted. Suddenly, his right hand made a discreet signal to alert his Guard Platoon. "Formation!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Shiranui Genma was immediately on red alert when he heard his commanding officer's mandate. _'Hokage-sama, you have surely become bold…'_ He turned to a confused Uchiha Sasuke. "Your match is done here, Sasuke. You've already won." Before he knew it, Gaara's siblings flanked his sides, muttered something among them, and then soared to the upper levels of the stadium, offhandedly noting the limp in his older brother. "This is an invasion, and I want you to follow them and detain them for questioning. Do not let them out of your sight. Do you understand?"

"…You have my word, proctor," the brunet affirmed with a grave look gracing his face. He then saw the warped ninja blast a hole into a wall with an enlarged fist made of sand and bolted out. As soon as the needle-chewing shinobi petered out in an instant, the lone wolf of Team Seven started to trail his opponent in hot pursuit. Sasuke broke into a mad dash until a man with some sort of tribal paint across his visible cheek blocked his path, with the left side of his face covered by a limp cloth. The hourglass-shaped insignia denoted him as a member of Sunagakure. _'Probably Gaara's jounin-sensei…'_

"I can't let you pass, Uchiha Sasuke-kun," the older ninja gravely stated, ready to bum-rush the kid, were it not for another Kakashi showing up in a blinding speed to intercept the man with a side-shoulder tackle. The two tumbled into a rolled-up mass as Baki kicked off the suspected clone of his instructor.

"Sasuke, you need to—" the copy of the ashen-haired assassin got cut off when the Sand jounin stabbed him in the Achilles' heel, instantly disrupting its matrices. Suddenly, the brooding brunet had to shield his eyes when a bright light accompanied the sound of electricity surging through the downed shinobi's form, causing him to writhe in pain. Not one to let an opportunity to slip by him, the Uchiha scion dashed his way up and out of the amphitheater like a speeding bullet.

In mid-leap into the dense woodland, Sasuke bit his thumb. _'No time to lose…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Just as the senbon-chewing ninja graced his leader's presence, Orochimaru's cohorts started to act fast. Flying in at a moment's notice, the three guards surrounded the Hokage as four of the snake-charmer's loyal bodyguards started chaining together simultaneous hand seals, to which the Sandaime's Guard Platoon responded in kind as their leader erected a yellow, pyramid-like barrier around himself and his target—his fallen student who remained seated.

The three ninja Hiruzen personally summoned linked together their hands to make a conjoined set of seals that instantly transported their Hokage and one of Konoha's most infamous traitors to a nondescript location deep in the heart of the woods, long before Orochimaru's henchmen placed up their Shishienjin to trap the duo in mortal combat.

One of the four strongmen of the Snake Wizard threw down her disguise in evident anger and violent frustration. "Shit! That old geezer was on to us from the start!"

"Now, Tayuya, there's no need for all that profanity," a hefty boy around their age bracket suggested in a chiding tone, casting off his guise alongside the others.

"How about I shove a kunai up your ass crack, you fat-ass tub of lard?" the only girl of the group—a hotheaded redhead by the name of Tayuya—bellowed, completely incensed.

XXXXXXXXXX

Once the feeling of dizziness subsided from the instantaneous warp, the wayward student of the Third Fire Shadow inwardly stewed in ire, having been duped into thinking that he would get the drop on the old man. To his mounting annoyance, that was not the case; however, he never wanted to display his initial surprise.

"Oh?" he casually observed, taking in the lush forest located far off in the remote regions of Konohagakure. "So, you want to die with some shred of dignity, Sarutobi-sensei, and not in front of your commanding forces?"

"…No," Hiruzen dully retorted. "I knew you snooped around far too closely, and despite your schemes, I sniffed you out first." With a clench of his hand to his ceremonial regalia, the Hokage shucked off the Fire Shadow mantle, displaying his simple battle uniform—black-sleeved shirt with metal underwire mesh, loose hakama of the same hue and a combat-style hat that framed both sides of his face. "I plan to go out in a blaze of glory," he reached into his pocket to show his opponent the golden-embroidered glove, "and humble you for your arrogance, thinking that you are untouchable…" With the sound of leather stretching, the hand-covering was snuggly fit on his right hand, "even if you lack a limb, which I highly doubt, knowing your insane regenerative abilities."

He was answered with a fit of hollow chuckles. "I was merely…scoping out some more talent in this rat-hole of a village," Orochimaru sneered, casually dismissing what his mentor perceived as truth. "You never disappointed me, Sensei, but your lax idealism has caused this dynasty of yours to stagnate and wither away like petals in a strong wind. You would have greatly benefitted from my research and experiments."

"…For what? At the cost of a few innocent lives?" Sarutobi quipped, eyes dangerously narrowing to slits. "Your hubris will be your downfall!" The older ninja gnashed together his teeth in anger. "No one—and I do mean, _no one_—gets to play God with people's lives in order to get a sick kick or two to satisfy the fruits of your labor."

"Oh, au contraire, Sensei," the snake-charmer snidely rebuked, "I merely want to watch the world burn by reigniting the flames of war again. Peace has dulled the hearts of warriors, causing them to throw down their arms to chase a fleeting dream. Besides," his eyes shrunk to a menacing stare, "you shouldn't act so high and mighty on your throne of bigotry."

The dark-skinned man's teeth tightened, feeling the direction to where his former pupil alluded. "Our ancestors have fought hard to enact a time of prosperity and no bloodshed. How dare you spit on that!" the wrinkled Hokage roared with renewed fervor.

"…Your hypocrisy sours my mood, Sensei," the yellow-eyed nuke-nin flatly remarked, despite the strained grin on his face. "It shall be sweet for me to end your life, right here, once and for all, and let you wallow in your sins."

The aged Hokage exuded a brimming presence as the very ground around them began to quake with his heightened chakra signature. "…We shall see."

XXXXXXXXXX

"They're closing in on us pretty quickly," Kakashi blankly noted from his vantage spot with his self-proclaimed rival. He then turned his sights on his pink-haired charge. "Sakura," he called down to her from his position, "why don't you wake up Sleepy-Head right next to you? I got a job for you two."

"Got it!" she responded before placing her hands in the Seal of the Ram to stimulate her own chakra to disrupt her blond teammate's energies, in order to cancel out the effects of the sleep-inducing genjutsu. With a slight tap across the downed blond's forehead, his eyes tightened up before they fluttered open.

"Ugh…" Naruto groaned as he saw jade eyes looking down on him. "Sakura…"

"…You forgot the lesson I taught you in order to cancel illusions," she rebuked, a frown marring her soft features.

"Sorry," he sheepishly uttered, slowly shaking the haze from his vision. "It must have been a subtle one."

"I swear…" the rosette-haired girl mumbled, turning her vision to a sound-sleeping Lee, who had a small bubble inflating and deflating from his nostril.

"While you two are in your own little world," their mentor sharply intoned, "we got Sound and Sand-ninja converging on our position. If you find any genin that are able to fight, Sakura, then find your way to them. Tell them I sent you, and they are to report to me. Understood?"

The emerald-eyed genin shakily nodded after using a little bit of energy to stir her temporary tutor from his slumber. "Yes, Sensei." She then turned to her squad mate. "Naruto, please back me up."

The bewhiskered genin yawned, still feeling a tad groggy. "That okay with you, Kakashi-sensei?"

"Strength and safety in numbers," the ashen-haired shinobi answered, Naruto's face already catching the hint. "The more, the merrier," he flippantly added. "You know the whole shebang, but be discreet about it."

"Sakura-san?" The spandex-wearing Rock Lee blinked away the sleep. "What, pray tell, is going on?"

"Yo, Fuzzy-Brows! Rise and shine," the blue-eyed shinobi prodded, shaking him awake. "Look alive. We need your help."

XXXXXXXXXX

Easily dispelling the negative effects of that blanket genjutsu, Yamanaka Ino and Tenten, still in their casual attire, felt ill at ease a few rows below, measuring the Oto-nin gradually surrounding them—at least four chuunin-ranked, by their estimates, as they sunk low to the cement seats to avoid detection.

Crouching with their rear ends pressed up against one another, the blonde mind-walker felt naked without any ninja tools on her person. "Damn," she cursed under her breath. "I thought I wouldn't need my weapons. Got any you can spare, Tenten-san?"

The bun-haired brunette emitted a shallow sigh. "Good thing I always come stocked," she murmured in a low voice, soft enough for her kunoichi comrade to hear amid the pandemonium all around them. Tenten whipped out a pretty thick-rolled scroll and, with a few distinct pops of white vapor, two kunai found their way into her hands. She had then reached around to let Ino hold onto one. "I expect a favor when this all blows over, and try to keep up with that."

The younger kunoichi firmly grasped the spade-like trowel in a reverse grip. "That's if we make it out alive…" she grumbled in resignation.

"…" The brown-eyed girl held back a retort, for, in a moment of shining hope, she felt two other signatures zip around them, evening the odds of their survival.

"Looks like you could use some help!" Naruto chirped, fox familiar strangely out of sight. "Good thing we found some friendlies!"

"Whiskers!" Ino cooed. "…and it's Sakura, too!"

"Huh? No backhanded forehead comments or barbs?" the third kunoichi rhetorically asked, taking point with her back to everyone else, in front of Ino, forming a straight line in between rows and the spectators' feet. "I swear, Ino, you're surprising me."

_'Not as much as you have,'_ the mind-walker reflected with a touch of remorse. "So, what brings you two here?" she voiced, foregoing an answer.

"We're getting together some of our forces and rendezvousing with Kakashi-sensei on the top bleacher," Sakura succinctly replied. "He didn't specify how many, though, but I'm sure that he wants those able-bodied to do something. Stick low to avoid engaging combat with a more experienced ninja."

"Otogakure may be behind this little stunt," Naruto added. "Then again, I didn't get a glimpse if that snake bastard was around."

"…He went under before things went south," the green-clad kunoichi clipped, much to the blond's annoying protests that he got taken by surprise. "Anyway, I just woke up Lee-san, and he's helping up top with Kakashi-sensei and Gai-sensei at this very moment."

"Whoa!" Naruto shouted as a few kunai and shuriken clanged against an oncoming salvo, causing sparks due to the friction, and almost landing near him and punctured his foot. The blond jinchuuriki pulled out a few kunai from his brace, crawled between the narrow space between the support beam and Tenten, and gave them to the curious Ino. "Here. No extra charge, since I can manage well without them." He then wound up a ninja spade and chucked it in a Suna-nin's backside who wandered a little too close to their position, getting a yelp in surprise as he jumped high in the air, clutching his buttocks. "Heh!"

"Naruto!" Sakura chastised with a hiss. "You idiot, you almost blew our cover!"

"Sorry! He came too close!" he defended.

"Um, thanks, I guess," Ino said, pretty dazed at the situation.

"No sweat. Gotta look out for our friends!" A beaming grin broke through his calm face. "I'll throw up a few clones to sneak around and find anyone else."

"Some gnats decide to be brave before they die, huh?" an approaching Oto chuunin boldly claimed as he leapt toward a surprised Ino. Quickly shaking off her worries, she propelled a portion of her mind to shove the jumping ninja out of the sky, causing the masked man to grunt before crash-landing a few meters away…hopefully knocked out and not getting up any time soon.

"You…might want to act fast, Whiskers," the mind-walking kunoichi remarked as her butt faced him. "We have to move if they're on to us."

_'Somehow, Ero-Sennin can be right at times…to enjoy the view…'_

"On it!" With crossing half-Tiger seals, five copies burst to life and immediately dropped low to the ground, in search of the sounds of struggle.

XXXXXXXXXX

Hyuuga Hinata should have tapped into her instincts. Kiba and she felt something amiss in the air, but she saw through the veil of illusion with her keen eyesight. Her teammate, on the other hand, along with his puppy companion, fell fast asleep due to its subtle effects.

Slowly creeping and keeping down her head from being spotted, the indigo-haired girl brusquely wondered if girls were more aware of illusory technique-casting than their male counterparts, mostly due to the fact that she noticed her fellow kunoichi easily brushing aside the blanket genjutsu, but the boys were about as observant as a blind man in a glass factory…

_'No…'_ she reasoned, brushing off that seemingly condescending thought. She, of all people, knew better. _'They work just as hard as we do…'_ The male-dominated portion of the shinobi forces tended to have higher reserves, which meant more stamina, but lesser control on their chakra reserves, as opposed to the kunoichi population, who had better handling over their life force, albeit smaller.

Recalling the past lessons, she halted Kiba's distorted chakra, making it flow smoother and more natural, allowing him to wake up. She then followed suit with the alabaster-furred canine.

"…I got caught in a genjutsu, didn't I, Hinata?" the dog-using ninja unhappily asked, a frown marring his childlike features.

"Don't worry about that, Kiba-kun," she assured. "Just keep your head down." She tapped into her ocular gift to scout the surrounding area, even though it was not as developed as her cousin's set. "The stadium is crawling with Sand and Sound shinobi." Suddenly, she saw a familiar signature—a friendly—crawl in between the bleacher seats, around the unconscious civilians. "…Naruto-kun's clones are on their way here!"

The Inuzuka heir simply grunted his displeasure. "He acts like he wants to do it all," he dourly uttered.

"Naruto-kun tries hard; harder than anyone I've ever seen to bring himself to this point," Hinata came back with unabashed pride, in her crush's defense. "I believe in him."

"Believe in who?"

Slightly squeaking in response, the exiled heiress' face grew flush when she set her normal vision on the blond shinobi that managed to inch his way behind her. "N-Naruto-kun!"

"Yo!" the doppelganger greeted. "Word from the One-Eyed Scarecrow says that he wants any able fighters. Didn't say how many, but we're to report to him on the double."

"One-Eyed…Scarecrow?" Kiba echoed, keeping vigilant eyes around the numerous brawls.

"My boss' boss, Kakashi-sensei, on the top row of seats," the bunshin clarified. "Jeez…Did the real me knock some sense _out_ of you in your little scuffle?" The shadow clone popped after seeing the snarled visage from the animalistic shinobi.

XXXXXXXXXX

Another of the blond's duplicates made its way closer to the top rows, sniffing out the guy he pushed into the stadium not too long ago. Sure enough, resting on his side was a seemingly unconscious Nara Shikamaru, his back facing the blue-eyed genin's line of sight.

"All right, Shikamaru," the copy stated, "I know you're not asleep, so get the hell up." He could not say the same for Chouji, since the mild concussion sustained from his fight with Temari compounded the effects of the illusion.

"No," the bored deer-rancher lethargically replied, "I'm sleeping. Really…"

The Naruto clone gave the son of the Nara head a flat stare from his crouched position. "…But…you're talking…"

"Trained myself to get mom off my back while still sleeping."

The persistent bunshin was not convinced. A bulging vein twitched on its temple. "Liar!"

"Zzz…" the pineapple-haired brunet began to snore in the hopes that the troublesome blond would go away.

The shadow clone's patience started to run thin. "…Nice try, but I'm not buying it. Get up, or I'll hurt you," it warned as it nudged the lackadaisical genin with its foot.

A hefty sigh drifted from Shikamaru's frame as he started rolling to the side to stand upright. "…Fine. So troublesome."

"You heard the orders. Stay low and find your way to Kakashi-sensei." Before the snarky genin had a chance to retort, the Kage Bunshin dispelled itself, its purpose no longer necessary or required.

_'I really wish I could watch the clouds after these exams…'_ The lazy genius maintained his hangdog look.

XXXXXXXXXX

True to his namesake, the Sandaime Hokage soared across the snapping tree branches like a monkey, carefully avoiding the slew of serpents that his capricious student conjured. When a rather large, brown-spotted snake attempted to snap Hiruzen in two, he deftly pressed off a higher limb, swung his body upward and summoned a Kage Bunshin, which then started running through a chain of hand seals. The authentic Fire Shadow flew through his own set.

_Uma. Inu. Tori. Ushi. Mi._

_'Horse. Dog. Bird. Ox. Serpent.'_

_Hitsuji. Uma. Mi. Tatsu. Ne. Ushi. Tora._

_'Ram. Horse. Serpent. Dragon. Rat. Ox. Tiger.'_

**"Doton: Dosekiryuu!"**

**"Katon: Karyuu Endan!"**

The seasoned veteran's duplicate summoned forth a substantially titanic dragon that roared to life from the earth, dust and stones flaking from its sturdy construction, and collided with the snake that tried to assault him. As the two serpentines warred for dominance, the genuine-article Sarutobi unleashed a hellish flame in the form of a dragon and scorched it to a burning crisp, forcing its summoner to jump out of its mouth before its life ended.

From his position on a tree, Orochimaru's eyes grew predatory. "You haven't lost your touch, Old Man," he whispered out in his snakelike demeanor.

"You haven't seen anything, yet, my wayward pupil…"

Expertly masking his astonishment, the Snake Wizard turned around to receive a blazing, jaw-rattling left uppercut from Konoha's revered leader.

"Nintaijutsu…It's the next biggest thing on the rise, as I've heard." He allowed a confident smirk on his wrinkled face as his stance shifted into a more offensive one. "Who said that old dogs can't learn new tricks?"

Cracking his mandible back into place, the snake-charmer clenched together his teeth in mounting anger, even though he dared not to show that his former mentor managed to dig under his skin. "You'll pay for that, Sarutobi-sensei…"

"For someone who was once hailed a genius," Hiruzen nonchalantly clipped as he evaded the serpents that slithered from his student's pallid arms, "you sure have squandered your talents." He saw those wan, yellow eyes narrow to slits as he scaled up another tree branch in a defensive manner. "You were my greatest student, but now…" Biting his thumb, the Sandaime zipped through five hand seals—signs with which Orochimaru and his other students were very familiar, "you're nothing more than a petulant child who's throwing a tantrum just because he didn't get his way around here." Throwing down his hand, a chain-linked spider web of kanji clusters inked the branch upon which the wizened Hokage stood, bringing forth his personal summon in a violent burst of plumy vapors—a white-furred monkey with a prehensile tail of the same coloration, with most of his hair protruding from the sleeveless kimono, which consisted of tiger-print stripes and trimmed with off-white trap furs, and black armor mesh underneath and his pants. "It's been a while, old friend…"

The newcomer summon blinked once and hung from the dangling wood to dodge a spray of acid in his direction. **"So, it has finally come to this, Hiruzen,"** it gruffly commented, its face souring into a hard frown as the bipedal monkey crossed its arms over its broad chest. **"I would rather have had this fight and killed him many years ago."**

"…I know," the grisly elder bitterly uttered, seeing his former student unhinge his jaws to draw forth the dreaded Kusanagi Long Sword, its tainted blade gleaming in the low sunlight filtering through the canopy, "but my determination has cemented itself…for real, this time. Great Monkey King Enma, please, I require your aid…"

XXXXXXXXXX

A small task force of Oto-ninja outside the perimeter of Konohagakure's borders evenly spaced out along a rather large circle, decorated with elaborate sealing tags and an array of cursive kanji designed in the form of a spider web.

"Is the sealing array set?"

"Yes!"

"Commence the snake-summoning ritual!" the leader grated out.

XXXXXXXXXX

Through enough guile and evasion with the assistance of Hinata's Byakugan and Kiba and Naruto's sense of smell, the six rookies slowly crept their way to the Copy Ninja, who seemed to have delivered punishing kicks alongside the spandex-clad duo to keep them at bay.

"For youth!" Gai screamed as he unleashed a devastating knee into a Sand ninja's chin.

"To smite deception!" Lee echoed as he swung a…fiery blaze kick and waylaid into the midsection of an astounded Sound chuunin, feeling a few ribs groan and dissolve into pieces upon contact before being sent skyward and into the arena below, landing with an unceremonious thud.

_'Huh…good use of my pointers, Fuzzy-Brows,'_ Naruto reflected in strange wonder. _'Supplementing your natural element—and kind of ironic how you keep spouting about youthful flames, no less—to boost your taijutsu…'_

"Ah, good," Kakashi breathed out before gut-punching a Chuunin-level Oto shinobi, letting him slump to the floor in an undignified heap, "you all made it."

"Give us the rundown, Kakashi-sensei, please," Naruto begged. "It's like a warzone around here!" Sure enough, he had seen Konoha ninja in droves flooding around the stadium to engage in combat.

"…That's because it is," his mentor explained with a weary tone. He then adopted the aura of a drill sergeant ready to put his underlings to task. "Seems like Suna and Oto banded together to try to crush Konoha while we weren't suspecting anything. We're not sure of the exact number, but…Hokage-sama had gotten some late-minute intelligence to stem the shock factor."

_'Well, that and my special lightning clone skulked about to see what they were preparing,'_ he mentally added.

"Well, not all of us are here," Sakura observed as she made a quick head-tally. "Where're Sasuke-kun and Shino? And Chouji?"

"Oh…" He bobbed his head in the direction of the bug-host's chakra signature. "Might as well come from around the corner, Shino-kun. I could use you."

"You need me for something," the kikaichuu-wielder evenly remarked as he stood from his crouch and ambled to the amassing squad. "Why? Because I'm vital for sensory and tracking." Acting rather unflappable, the destructive beetle-host pushed the bridge of his sunglasses higher on his nose, to prevent them from drooping.

"The big guy's out cold," Naruto regrettably answered, recalling the feedback from his dispelled bunshin. "He won't be joining us."

"Anyway," the ashen-haired shinobi continued, "as for Sasuke…well, there's a reason why I need a select few of you, since you seem to be in fighting shape."

"…So, you're dividing us up?" Shikamaru hazarded a guess, doing his best to read between the lines.

He almost missed a ghost of a nod from the Copy Ninja. "Right. Hinata, Shino, Tenten…" Said ninja snapped to attention, "you are to head to the bunkers and help defend the Academy students along with the chuunin proctors. Use discretion and avoid getting tangled up in a fight you can't win." He looked down at the shortest of the trio. "Hinata's Byakugan can help you avoid the ruckus," he then turned to the tallest, "Shino has the functions and capabilities as a strongman," he then shifted his visible eye to the other kunoichi of the makeshift cell, "and Tenten can provide support and snipe, if need be. If you run directly into any enemy ninja that get to you three…eliminate them with extreme prejudice."

"K-Kill them?" Hinata shakily asked, feeling the bile rise in her throat.

"Better them than you," the jaded veteran reasoned. "If you can somehow incapacitate without killing, if it weighs on your conscience that much, then do so. If not, then you must do what you can in order to survive, regardless of how you morally or ethically feel. Is that understood?" He was answered with a set of nods, but a hesitant one came from the indigo-haired kunoichi. "This applies to each and every one of you."

"How are you going to split up the rest of us, Kakashi-sensei?" Shikamaru inquired.

"The rest of you will tail and meet up with Sasuke," he responded. "He went after Gaara and his teammates."

"Kiba," Gai cut in, "since you are awake, you and your puppy can aid in sniffing him out."

"…It kind of sucks that my Raiton Kage Bunshin didn't have a chance to say anything to him before it got decimated," the Copy Ninja added with a touch of regret. "There went half my chakra supply…"

"That's fine and dandy and all that," the canine-themed ninja intoned, tuning out the strange jounin's mutterings, "but I don't have anything to use as a base for his scent."

"Ah…" Pursing his lips, Kakashi rummaged through his utility pouch, grabbing at what he felt was cloth. "Here you go!" he chirped, closing his eye and producing the evidence in question.

"Gah!" Naruto screeched, holding his hands in front of his nose.

"Ugh…"

"Blech…" Kiba's face blanched.

"Huh?" The Copy Ninja's visible eye blinked and then looked down at what he held, which drew in the strange or revolted looks. It was a pair of white underwear…_his_ white underwear. "Oh…heh…Oops. That's my dry-cleaning stuff!" He stashed that away, not really feeling ashamed. It was a _clean_ set of briefs. He had then swapped them out in favor of a bandage wrap that had dressed a wound on his brooding charge. "Try this, then." After handing the shaggy brunet the strip of cloth, Kakashi deftly chained the summoning seal sequence to bring forth Pakkun, his brown-furred pug and de facto head of his ninken. "I'll have Pakkun escort you since he has higher scent sophistication, just in case Akamaru, Naruto or you don't pick up on immediate threats."

"Roger!" the fang-marked boy complied.

"Shikamaru, I'm assigning you in charge of this small genin platoon." His hazel eye drifted to his rosette-haired pupil. "Sakura, in the case of his absence, you're his second-in-command."

"Troublesome…"

"Understood, Sensei."

"Naruto…"

"Yes?"

"…you and Lee are the strong arms to provide heavy collateral damage and brute force, if the need calls for it. Dosha-kun is still asleep, but that shouldn't deter you from using your nose, too, for tracking purposes."

"Got it!" the blond saluted, looking around to see his ocher-furred companion.

"That leaves Ino as a support role with her limited skill sets." He paid no attention to the purple-clad kunoichi's grumblings. "You have your orders, so hop to it!"

"Yes, sir!" they chorused.

Just as the genin began to mobilize and file out, the blond demon vessel took note of his friend's apparent worry decorating her softer features. He fell back a bit and awkwardly stood in front of the girl he could like. "Hinata-chan…are you okay?"

Whatever was on her mind blew away into surprise as she took note of the close proximity between her and her idol. "Um…" she murmured, "…no…not really…"

He saw the vacillation in her opalescent eyes; the uneasiness to snuff out a life like blowing out a candle. "I know that war isn't an easy thing to deal with. Hell, I haven't experienced it. We all haven't," he then walked up and placed his calloused hands on her soft shoulders, "but I know you're strong, and you worked so hard to get to where you are. Don't ever forget that, all right?"

Her vision turned to the floor. "…I won't."

"Be proud that you are one of us, Hinata-chan," he assured her with a sunny smile. "Be strong for your clan—your family—and they might turn around and rename you the heiress if you show bravery in these hard times."

The trembling in her frame ceased as Hinata stared up into those warm eyes, wishing that she could take some of that confidence from him and use it to weather this skirmish. Slowly, she advanced into Naruto's personal space, putting him in an uncomfortable situation as she embraced him with an unknown sense of might in those slender arms of hers, much to the hidden surprise of several.

"H-Hinata-chan?" Somehow, he could get used to hugs, in due time. It made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside, despite feeling a bit ungainly as he returned it.

Slowly, she broke the tender cuddle. "Um…Be safe and be careful, Naruto-kun."

He saw a strange twinkle in her pupil-less ocular gifts, which made his cheeks flush and thickly swallow. "Yeah. You, too."

"Grr," her teammate growled as he neared the hole in the wall to the surrounding forest. "We don't have all day to be hugging or making out, you know…"

Naruto rounded his gaze on his boisterous counterpart, giving him a death glare. "You're kind of being a killjoy, Kiba. You're ruining the moment," he deadpanned. "Can't you see that _your_ teammate is worried?"

"That's not the point!" he bellowed back from the gaping hole. "The more time _you_ waste here, the more distance we have to cover to find _your_ teammate."

"Such a jackass," he grumbled under his breath as soon as the Inuzuka heir launched himself into the thicket. He tousled his quiet friend's hair. It surely felt soft. "Keep it together, girl. We'll be back before you know it."

A scarlet hue grew brighter on her face. "…Okay."

"Kakashi-sensei, keep an eye on Dosha-chan. He's sleeping near Row U in the bleachers."

"Got it. Now, go, Naruto. Time is of the essence."

With that in mind, the pointy-eared genin gathered a decent enough speed and jumped into the wooded area and vanished without a trace to catch up with his battalion of peers. _'Sasuke, you better not do anything too ridiculously stupid…like me…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Chaos and pandemonium erupted in the merchants' quarters when the fighting boiled over into the streets and alleyways.

Within several minutes, and steering everyone with her ocular gift, Hinata, Shino, and Tenten, for the most part, managed to pass through or work around the string of fights, remaining elusive under the cover of the uproarious noises. The sides of buildings had collapsed in on themselves due to the strain of various techniques thrown by the shinobi of the Hidden Sand.

The Hyuuga maiden's heart went out to those who lost their homes in the wake of destruction, and she tried her best not to vomit upon seeing the sights of dead ninja—allied or foe—due to the X-ray vision offered to her by her innate Byakugan. Those were memories that left their mark on her mind for times to come.

_'Is this…the same feeling you get when you lose someone close to you?'_

Despite the drilling of the Shinobi Code into their indoctrinated minds, the indigo-haired kunoichi sensed raw emotion clawing into her soul with ravenous ferocity.

"It'll be all right," Tenten whispered, offering some form of encouragement, albeit an empty attempt, no less. She could practically feel the dark sentiments from the younger girl. "Just a few more blocks, and we'll be at the Academy, where we won't have to do much of anything."

Shino's eyebrows creased a negligible amount as they dashed in their brisk pace. "Let us hope that our path is smooth. Why? Even though I have comrades upon which to depend, I'd rather not expend energy to take down someone…bigger than us, for lack of a better word."

"…I think you're just being lazy, Shino," Tenten blandly stated. "Keep your eyes sharp, Hinata. We're almost there…"

The excommunicated daughter of the Hyuuga clan head caught a glimmer of something from her widened peripherals and blazed through a few hand seals to manipulate the water that gushed from a busted hydrant not too far from them to create a watery shield to cushion the trajectory of a kunai that whistled through the air.

"…Looks like we got company," the kikaichuu-host obviously remarked, halting in his tracks to cover his teammate.

Sure enough, from the alleyway, a nondescript kunoichi from the Hidden Sound Village—as denoted by the musical eighth-note engraved on her forehead protector—sauntered out and gauged the trio with a belittling glare behind her head-covering. "Looks like the mice have come out to play," she purred, "and what's this? A Byakugan-wielder with no cursed seal technique, too? Must be my lucky day."

_'She must be at least a chuunin-level ninja,'_ Tenten pondered as she slowly reached for her weapons scroll.

The female ninja, however, felt some tingling sensation; like there were insects crawling all over her frame. As she glanced down at her exposed skin, tiny, beetle-like insects crept along her forearms while feeling a bit lightheaded, feeling her life force quickly fade.

"Take her out, now!" Shino commanded as he remained focused on his hive.

Shaken out of her fear, Hinata bent the water with a few more hand seals, ending on the Seal of the Bird, as a wriggling serpentine made out of the liquid launched itself, miniature fangs exposed to tear into its target.

**"Suiton: Suijadan no Jutsu!"**

With great intent, the Water Release: Water Serpent Missile penetrated the core of the woman's body and ripped out her heart with relative ease as it continued through her back, much to Hinata's sheer horror as she had unexpectedly killed in the heat of the moment. Just as the kunoichi began her descent to the ground below, the Hyuuga maiden gulped when she saw those lifeless eyes staring at her with their dull shade of green, now a listless, olive color, now burned into her memory like a branding mark.

She never knew the extent of power that the jutsu held, seeing that this was the first time she had used it in a combat-type situation. Naruto had no idea on the product of the concentration of boiling down the Water Dragon Projectile Technique into a streamline, but smaller, snakelike entity, mainly due to the fact that Hinata did not have the reserves to handle such a chakra-intensive Suiton ninjutsu. Evidently, the result spoke for itself.

_'I…I'm a killer…'_

"Hinata, stay with us!" Tenten all but shouted, shaking the girl from her frozen state. "We have to keep moving before we cause a scene! We have an objective to complete!"

Numb to the chilling scene before her, the younger kunoichi mutely nodded as she found the inner strength to press on. "R-Right…"

XXXXXXXXXX

Once Naruto fell into formation with the cluster of genin as the center, the entire group decided to speed up in search of their fellow comrade.

"Glad of you to catch up, Naruto," Shikamaru said in a laid-back manner.

"Just had to make sure everything was good to go on that end," he relayed as his battle coat angrily fluttered in the wind. Before he knew it, he felt soft padding on his upper back and, glancing up; he saw his teacher's pug resting on his mop of blond hair, which was normally Doshaburi's custom. "Did I ask you to land on me, Pakkun?" he groused.

**"Since you're in the center,"** Pakkun reasoned, **"it gives me better leverage to take a whiff."** He paused. **"By the way, your hair smells like vanilla…"**

The blond cleared his throat as odd looks were thrown his way. "Regardless," he cut in, until he heard what sounded a lot like "pansy" from behind him, disguised as a cough, "we need to keep an eye out for Sasuke and make sure that he doesn't do anything that would compromise his position."

"Wow…Naruto with a brain…" Kiba—the suspect in question that jabbed at the blue-eyed genin's manhood—intoned in a dull monotone.

"Don't get mad because I trounced you in the prelims, Dog Breath!" he hotly clipped. "I'll gladly do so again, but circumstances call for us to work together in order to keep our home from being invaded further. Now, quit your belly-aching and let's do the damn thing!"

**"Uh oh…"**

The deer-herding Nara heir turned his head at a profile as he led the small group. "Something the matter?"

The dog-using ninja also got a whining yip from Akamaru. "We got trouble, guys."

**"There appear to be eight…no, nine ninja tailing us, and they seem to know the lay of the land with frightening detail."** That sent a wave of alarm through the six ninja as they sailed through the sea of trees.

"We are outnumbered, but that does not mean we are outclassed!" Lee proudly reasoned, doing his best to keep the group morale from behind Shikamaru.

"…Sound shinobi, then," Sakura concluded in her rationale, speaking up from her spot behind her friend and rival. "Snake-Face used to live here, so it's not much of a stretch to say that they were drilled in the map schematics and village layouts."

"I'll send a disguised clone to test their level," the middleman declared as he conjured a clone to look like a Sand shinobi. "Fall back, try to stall them and pump them for info, if you can." The doppelganger lazily saluted from its orders as it broke away from the squadron.

"Good thinking, Naruto!" Ino praised from behind him. "That should give us a bit more breathing room, unless they're too crafty to think otherwise."

"I don't know. These Sound chuunin under that snake bastard seem…kind of improperly trained." He easily remembered the incident that urged him to save Kin from an unknown fate.

"Arf! Grr…arf!"

"Eh? What do you mean there's someone coming from our flank?" Kiba asked his white-furred familiar.

The chocolate-colored canine confirmed it with widened eyes. **"Unknown element closing in on us from our four o'clock position!"**

**_'And why does this person's scent overlap with Naruto's?'_** he tacked on as an afterthought. **_'Could it be…another ally?'_**

Dashing into a full sprint, Kin found her way from the ground and into the tree line with the rest of the Konoha shinobi, putting all but one of them on edge.

Kiba was the first to react as he blocked her path, which made everyone else slow their paces and land on some tree branches. "You got a lot of nerve to show your face around here, foreigner!" he bellowed, growling to show his desire to protect the pack. "Your people are causing all this trouble!"

Coming to her defense, the Uzumaki scion jumped in between the two, putting up his hands in a vulnerable stance. "Now, hold on for one second and put a leash on it, Dog Breath! I can vouch for her!"

The spandex-wearing genin's face contorted into shock as he witnessed the kunoichi he soundly pummeled in the preliminary match-ups. "Why is it that you are defending her, Naruto-kun?"

"Don't tell me," Ino began, a blush creeping up her features, "Whiskers is going rogue on us by sleeping with the enemy…"

Her fellow blond's face assumed a fish-like appearance as his breaths caught in his throat, causing him to sputter like crazy. "W-What? That's not true, Ino!"

"P-Please," the brunette newcomer chimed in to state her case, "don't hurt me! I'm not the enemy! I didn't know anything about what's going on!"

"Nice try," the green-hooded rosette icily snipped, glaring daggers in her direction. "Like we'll fall for that!" She still had unfinished business with her from their little fight in the Forest of Death. Maybe she ought to pull on her hair and see how she felt after all was said and done… "I don't know why you're protecting her after what she's done, Naruto."

The bewhiskered genin, in turn, gave everyone a defiant glare. "She's telling the truth, guys." He turned to his unwanted roommate. "So, Kin-chan, why are you out here?" _'…and not back at home?'_ He blinked, catching that thought like a butterfly in a net. Did he really want her to stay, deep down?

The former Oto-kunoichi felt an uneasy atmosphere around her from the critical gazes of the blond's comrades. "I…came to help in any way I can. I realize now that I was a mere pawn to be thrown away when I'm no longer needed." For emphasis, she had unwrapped the hitai-ate on her forehead and withdrew a kunai from her brace and, much to the shock of everyone in the secluded forest, slashed through the Hidden Sound's insignia without any hint of hesitation.

_'That's…a pretty profound statement,'_ Shikamaru mulled over in his head, finding some reason in the madness. _'She scratched through her headband to renounce her affiliation to Otogakure's ninja forces.'_

"Do you believe me, now?" she resignedly murmured, keeping down her head. "I was probably better off dead, anyway…"

"That seems rather convincing," the lazy genius spoke up, feeling the need to get going since they did have some ninja that were following them. "However, there still comes that stigma about interacting with runaway shinobi who no longer hold allegiance to anyone but their own agendas and unknown loyalties." He gave her a glancing once-over, feeling the sincerity in her dark irises and sighed. "On the other hand, I see that your intentions are true and in the right place."

"Shikamaru, do you really think it is wise to factor in a nuke-nin?" Sakura warned, still sensing a little paranoia since Kin decided to go turncoat and work for them. "She could be leading us into a trap, for all we know. How come we stopped?" Her jade eyes turned frigid. "She could also be stalling us while her buddies catch up to us."

Apparently, the lethargic deer-rancher must have let the rosette-haired kunoichi's words roll off him, or he could not care less. "I think I have a plan to spring a trap of our own. Sakura, you take charge. Ino, Kin, you're with me."

"Huh? What?" To say that the Shadow Blossom showed confusion would have proven a generous observation.

"…Do you even know of my abilities?" Kin questioned.

"…Troublesome," he griped. "Come on, you two. You can discuss it as we fall back."

Naruto's face lit up when his clone dispelled. "Oh, boy. Clone just popped. He talked their ears off for as long as he could, and they're on their way. Eight chuunin…and a jounin captain…"

"That means we must make haste!" the broccoli-green-clad splendid ninja boomed.

"Lee-san, charge ahead to locate Sasuke-kun," Sakura ordered. "You're one of the fastest on this cell, and with your speed, you should close the gap, if they continued in a straight line. Pakkun," she rounded her green eyes to the talking ninken, "that means you're with him."

**"Are you sure about this, Sakura?"**

"Positive," she reaffirmed. "Kiba, Akamaru and Naruto should cover your absence in the meantime. Even though their noses aren't as sharp as yours, I'm pretty sure their contributions will make up the difference."

"Way to put the pressure on us," the Inuzuka scion mumbled.

"It's called having faith in our abilities, dumbass!" Naruto chided before his blue eyes found their way to round, dark ones. "Fuzzy-Brows, Pakkun, we'll take it from here. Storm ahead, full power!"

With a crisp salute, Lee, along with a hesitant pug, took off with lightning speed. "Good luck, Shikamaru. If you can get them off our backs as we move closer to finding our teammate, then we'd greatly appreciate it." Sakura threw the monk-style hood over her head, obscuring her eyes. "Let's go, guys!"

"You better not die as decoys, either!" Naruto zealously added as he bounded off a tree branch, picking up some speed alongside his boisterous counterpart in Inuzuka Kiba. "You got that?"

Shikamaru's eyes grew half-lidded as his mind constructed a decent strategy to detain the Oto shinobi in hot pursuit. _'We'll be the bait, and Kin will be the lure as the redeemer to her former comrades, allowing me to throw down a Kage Mane to hold them off until help arrives…'_

He whipped out a ninja spade and carved a bit into the available wood, immediately putting his concocted plan to work. _'Time to throw them off and make it look convincing…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

A large cloud erupted from the West Gate leading into Konoha, and from the choking miasma loomed a double-headed serpent that towered over the walls, its brown-tinted scales reflecting some of the sunlight. It slowly slithered through the forest from the summoning array, uprooting a few trees in its trail, uncontested in its slow lurching after its hearty meal of nine human morsels.

Once it reached the fortified barriers, a flick of its mighty tail sent the sentry post and the partition crumbling to rubble and debris, allowing the serpentine oddity to sway into the merchants' quarters without much of a challenge.

Hesitant ninja jumped out of the way as it progressed deeper into the heart of Konoha proper.

In the case of the poor, unfortunate cabbage merchant, who had his cart repaired a week or so ago, scrambled to safety inside an abandoned eatery stand, taking his replenished load of the leafy greens with him.

Before he knew it, he felt a cool breeze steadily picking up as he noticed a huge shadow blotting out the sun. He frantically looked up to see a humongous toad with a twin set of extremely large katana strapped onto its back dropping from out of the sky and falling right on top of the snake's scaly hide. The large beast hissed before the amphibian unsheathed its weapons and sliced right through both heads.

The cabbage merchant felt ice drop into his gut when he noticed the path of one of the decapitated heads in the battle of legends.

The olive-clad vegetable connoisseur had to forsake his precious cargo to save his own skin, just as the serpentine cranium dropped right onto the empty stand, obliterating his carriage cart again.

He pulled on his hair as his hat drooped from his scalp and dropped to the ground. "My cabbages!" He pulled himself into a meditating lotus position and sulked. "Oh, forget it!"

Fortune never shone on the unlucky man who seemed to come under fire in the wrong place at the wrong time.

XXXXXXXXXX

The wandering sage from Mount Myouboku stretched out his collapsible telescope from his kimono shirt and examined the surroundings from on top of his reliable, amphibious, sword-wielding familiar in a fruitless attempt to locate his mentor and the snake in the grass that was his former comrade. So far, he came up empty, with little to no clue as to where their fight was taking place. The stadium had a lot of Konoha influence, including the perimeter around the amphitheater-like arena, which was a good thing.

"Sensei, I hope you can handle Orochimaru," he softly uttered to no one, in particular, "wherever you are…"

XXXXXXXXXX

Sasuke felt the gap in distance close between him and the trio of Sand ninja as he rode atop his wildcat summon, Kiyoshi—and he still questioned the validity of that name with its gender. He noticed the sluggish pace the black-clad puppet-user kept, which probably led to hindering the overall team speed due to the bandaged wrappings around his torso. If it came down to it, then he would get knocked off first, since he posed as the liability that held them back.

He did not have to decide, however, when the puppet-holding ninja stopped, mumbled a few words to his fellow shinobi, and then, they zoomed off.

"Out of the way, cat-man," the Uchiha scion glibly snipped.

**"I take offense to that,"** the inverse-colored tiger growled beneath him, green eyes glinting in a predatory manner.

"Whatever," he casually dismissed.

"Not a chance," Kankurou bit back in a rejoinder. "I'm going to hold you until my siblings get away." He slung the bundle off his back and slammed it against the sturdy tree branch upon which he stood.

"A stubborn one, I see," he plainly assessed, keeping his countenance even and measured. "Well, to me, you're just a stain that needs to be cleaned up and tossed aside like a used napkin. I got bigger fish to grill." Kiyoshi, on the other hand, let loose a menacing roar that conveyed pride and power, whiskers twitching on either side of his pink nose.

"…So, you got an oversized kitten. That won't stop me from beating you senseless."

He barely registered a green blur that barreled into him from out of nowhere, pegging him in the chest cavity with a powerful, rising knee and sent him skidding off his tree branch and past a few others before the kabuki-themed ninja firmly gripped some bark to stop himself. The agony tripled, given the nature of his recovering ribs. He forcefully gulped in air, even though his lungs felt on fire from the pain.

Sasuke realized that it was that weirdo that put the smack-down on him before the start of the Chuunin Exams, and he had a winded pug tightly gripped onto his spandex, fearing that he might fall off.

"Uchiha Sasuke-kun," Lee spoke, maintaining his determined gaze at the puppet-using shinobi before them, "reinforcements are on the way. I suggest that you wait until they come to support you, instead of going at it alone. I will step in and fight in your stead if you slow your speed. They will arrive shortly." A bandaged right hand, held out flat and palm-up, subtly taunted the injured ninja.

"…I can't let him get away," the brooding brunet calmly intoned. "He and I have unfinished business, and I can't lose them, now." He then turned his eyes a small amount to take in the strange pug. "Pakkun has my scent, so he should keep tabs on me, even when I'm far out of your eyesight." The dark-haired avenger glanced down at his familiar. "Let's go, Kiyoshi."

**"…As you wish, Sasuke."**

"…Who am I to interfere with such drive and determination?" the taijutsu-oriented ninja rhetorically asked to himself before he gave a confident stare-down toward his opponent, who looked a bit haggard.

_'I'll just leave a trail that even the dobe can pick up,'_ the younger brunet calculated as he applied pressure to Kiyoshi's sides, making him scratch the tree branch.

**"Hey, what gives?"** the tiger-summon inquired with threatening intent as he leapt away to reach his summoner's target.

"We're leaving a trail of your scratch marks for the others to identify." The world seemed to open up to the last of the Uchiha when his ocular gift activated, flooding his sight with crystal-clear definition and detail provided by his level-two Sharingan.

**"You could have told me, Uchiha,"** the black feline ground out, **"instead of trying to crush my diaphragm."** Then, a vagrant thought fluttered in the familiar's head. **"How do you know they'll know that I, a summoned tiger, made them, and not that Gaara kid?"**

"Hn," his summoner snorted. "Good point." He raised his shoulders in an apathetic shrug before smirking in that standard Uchiha fashion. "I'll make it up as we go along."

XXXXXXXXXX

The two leaders of their respective villages fought for dominance in the realm of their strong suits—kenjutsu, in Orochimaru's case, and boujutsu in Hiruzen's. Once thought to have the upper hand in reach, the wizened Hokage's initial theory had to get thrown out since that damned Grass-Cutter longsword had the ability to extend its already impressive length.

Enma, the Great Monkey King that had since transformed into a black and gold staff among seventy-one other permutable combinations, felt uneasy, since the Kusanagi could cut him if his wielder lost his focus or attention.

Aside from labored breathing, the only sounds in the forest came from the grinding contact of adamantine meeting imbued steel in a test of will and might.

The snake-charmer had gone for an overhead strike, only to have the wrinkled veteran capture it with a perpendicular parry of his personal summoning familiar. With the strain from the unnatural strength of his wayward student, his arms started to sink from the pressure, opening him up for a quick, extended sword jab that grazed across his right shoulder.

_'Got you right where I wanted, Sensei,'_ the Densetsu no Nin haughtily mused. Inwardly, though, due to a lack of available guinea pigs to fuel his special kinjutsu, he was forced to resort to bare-knuckle brawling with his former mentor. _'Your fate is sealed…'_

Finding the inner strength that empowered him, and all the while masking the pain with a slight grimace, Hiruzen pushed off the gleaming blade and retaliated with a twisting poke of his sentient baton to Orochimaru's sternum, following up with a critical chin strike to gain a bit of distance to facilitate his recovery time.

"Enma, I feel that it is time to combine our power into one," the seasoned Fire Shadow cryptically commented.

He could feel the trepidation in the way the Great Monkey King twitched in his gnarled grip. **"It's been many decades since we have used _that_. I don't think your body can handle it now, compared to back then, Sarutobi."**

"My senses still haven't dulled, old friend. I'm still in fighting shape," he allayed to his years-long fighting partner with a witty smile. "I could still use the small boost, anyway."

**"…As you insist,"** Enma relented, twirling himself into a spin before dispelling his staff form and converting back into the anthropomorphic simian, **"but we need to create a big enough distraction for it to work."**

Tossing a few smoke bombs and propelling himself with a short burst of speed courtesy of the Body Flicker Technique, Hiruzen managed to zoom out about one hundred meters away, along with his primate familiar.

"Ready?" He assumed a stance with his arms stretched out to the right and standing on one knee.

**"On your mark, Sarutobi," **Enma responded, mirroring his summoner's actions.

The two figures swung their arms like pendulums before the tips of their fingers touched, feeling their chakra signatures resonate in a brilliant flash of light.

**"Shinrei no Higi: Enjin Kyuushuu!"**

Emerging from the dazzling display of power was neither man nor beast…but a combination of both. The perfect fusion adopted the receding hairline of the man assimilated with his old-time friend. Now brandishing an elaborately decorated staff, the dark-skinned entity spun the bronze weapon with deft hands, its prehensile tail swaying to and fro from the opening in the blended garb.

**"Orochimaru must pay for his crimes…"** the figure thundered with the two distinct voices that made up the sum of the simian-human merger. The wrinkled simian-like combatant launched off a tree branch, splintering it with incredible force as it zipped along the canopy to make a hasty return to the battlefield.

While meditating in the mindscape that surrounded them in peaceful serenity, the two souls incorporated to create the blended warrior sat down together, across from one another in lotus-style, and with their hands held in a conjoined Seal of the Tiger. The two exchanged their internal life forces to channel the power to fuel their secret technique.

**_"We have ten minutes, Hiruzen,"_** the Great Monkey King spoke, his voice a booming echo over the mountain landscape littered with scented flowers and abundant fruit.**_ "Make every second count."_**

_"…Rest assured, old friend, that this is the finale."_

**_"I hope you're right…"_** Enma trailed off. **_"We're using mostly my body to fuel the physical aspect of the ambient chakra that surrounds all of us, while you use your will to steer and guide the body to your heart's content."_**

_"Worry not, Enma. The seal I have on me kicks us out after the time limit has elapsed, so we won't permanently end up as that form."_ His eyes opened from his trance. _"You haven't forgotten, have you?"_

**_"…No."_**

_"Good. Now, let us focus and permute our special weapon, shall we?"_

The primate's face contorted into a small grin, his eyes still half-lidded in his meditative state. **_"…With pleasure, Hiruzen."_**

XXXXXXXXXX

The band of Sound shinobi maintained their distance from the little shrimp of a genin squad from Konoha, despite the…distractions from this rather oblivious Sand ninja.

_'Yeesh…what a chatterbox,'_ the jounin of the tracking team reflected with a weary sigh. From the weather reports to meaningless gossip about many different things, the leader could never get in a word edgewise, until the bumbling idiot scrambled away.

Regardless, the band of nine shinobi managed to recover their trail, which then slightly veered to the northwest.

"You lot, scout ahead," he commanded his juniors, "while I keep a bit of breathing room, should anything suddenly happen." Like the typical ingratiating brownnosers, they complied with gusto and picked up their speed to identify the trail.

The team leader's suspicions nagged at him to lag at the rear as he vigilantly scanned the direction of possible pursuers.

Much to the masked man's dismay, his cell got trapped in a diversion. "Why are their…shadows linked together?" Sharpening his senses, he saw three, little ninja, seemingly held at knife-point by another small fry in their ranks before a slithering shadow slung out and connected with the others, binding them in place. "I knew it! A trap!"

_'I knew that pawn of a bitch would go runaway on us!'_

"You dropped something…"

His meandering, vocal thoughts halted when he felt a tap on the shoulder that preceded the new voice, only to receive a solid left jab straight in the face, promptly knocking him out.

Sarutobi Asuma, chain-smoking jounin instructor of Konoha's Team Ten, shook out his hand to ease the tingling sensation. _'I'm on the way, Shikamaru. Just hang in there.'_

XXXXXXXXXX

"…Are those claw marks?" Naruto observed as they gained ground to meet up with Sasuke.

"Yeah, and there seems to be a note left behind, too," Sakura answered from her spot behind the blond shinobi.

The dog-using genin took a whiff. "It has Sasuke's scent all over it, so it must be from him."

"Arf!"

"Oh, and Akamaru said that the smells behind us have stopped in their tracks."

The blue-eyed enigma followed suit for cross-reference. "Huh. I don't smell anyone else behind us, either."

"That must mean Shikamaru and the others have successfully detained them with his plan," the only girl remaining reasoned. _'And I hope to the gods above that Kin-san didn't betray us or sell us out to those Oto-nin…'_

Once he paused to read the note, Naruto's fingers tightened around it, making him snarl. "The nerve of that guy!" he growled.

"Huh? What's wrong, Naruto?" Green eyes confusedly blinked.

"It says: _Dobe, follow my breadcrumb trail. It's so easy that even an Academy student can pick up on it. Sasuke._" The bewhiskered kid's vulpine features turned murderous.

Kiba snorted from his position as the front spot before laughing out loud.

"At any rate," Sakura intervened, bouncing off a flimsy tree branch, "we should keep moving."

Naruto kept mumbling to himself in a fuming ire, promising pain to his teammate the next time they saw each other.

XXXXXXXXXX

The pursuant brunet felt a tickle hit his nose as he stemmed the oncoming sneeze with a quick press of his index finger to his nostrils.

**"Is something the matter, Sasuke?"** his tiger summon inquired as he maintained consistent altitude in the treetops.

"No, Kiyoshi. I'm fine," the boy sniffed.

Charging in full leaps, the brunet's feline summon saw the two fleeing ninja ahead of him.

_'So close…'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Easily pinpointing the heinous chakra pouring off the snake-charmer, the fused being deftly flipped over several tree branches to pick up the pace.

Suddenly sensing a looming figure over its head, the assimilated being hurled its bronze staff like a boomerang in an upward motion, clubbing the serpent summon with a staggering blow dealt to its nose. The strange cane found its course back to the furred hand of the humanoid ape, twirling it this way and that.

"So…I see that you also have secret arts at your disposal, Sarutobi-sensei," Orochimaru casually remarked from his hiding spot, his fabled sword dreadfully gleaming in the available light filtering through the tree line, "but how long will you last, I wonder?"

The creature before him had Enma's height and battle attire, but a bit of his old mentor's face managed to show through—a thinning beard and hairline etched across its weathered features, in addition to the metal arm and shin guards on his battle uniform.

**"Let's find out…"** In an instant, a golden light emanated from the special rod before it assumed the form of a two-pronged, pincer-like halberd with magnificent cutting power akin to a crab's claw. Using its gripping feet, the simian-like effigy hurled its bulky form downward to avoid one of the enlarged snake's maw, only to come up from the momentum on the limb to cleave a long line into its scaly carapace, causing it to hiss out due to the lancing pain on its underbelly. With the polearm still lodged inside the venomous snake and under its chin, the Hiruzen-Enma fusion tossed the vile serpent high over its head and over the high canopy.

Shucking off the blood from the snake-charmer's familiar, the weapon in the being's hands warped again, but this time, assumed a bladed boomerang before cutting its dark eyes in the direction of its opponent. **"Your intent is palpable…"** Winding up, the fused enigma launched the newly created, bronze projectile as it fluttered through the tree leaves, in direct route to uproot Orochimaru from his vantage point. Breathing in deeply, the Sandaime Hokage, in his Ape-Man Merger secret art, unleashed hellish flames from his mouth to incinerate his wayward pupil, boosted with the power of Enma and his shared body.

_'So…he does not require hand seals to operate Katon ninjutsu in that form…'_ the Legendary Ninja mused to himself as he swapped places with a log that was going to burn to cinders. _'…Interesting.'_

He wished he had enough men to fuel the Nidaime's dreaded forbidden technique, but it seemed as though his manpower got stretched thin a little bit. There was only one way to end this foiled invasion…

"My, my, you haven't lost your knack for combat, old man," he sneered. "It seems you still live up to your name." He sensed the elder ninja's agents quickly converge—just perfect for him to throw in the last jab to bring to light his master's humiliation. "It's just a shame that, for all your power, you failed where it counts the most…"

**"Bowing out gracefully, I see…"**

"Oh, not at all." Orochimaru's eyes narrowed to mere slits as he slowly warped himself into the tree branch on which he stood. "Your men will soon know that you couldn't stop all of us from abandoning you and this cesspool, you let Kushina live like a practical prisoner behind your wife, Biwako, and then, when she and your precious little Minato died to stop the Kyuubi…"

**"You will hold your tongue, Orochimaru!"** the form bellowed as it soared to the retreating ninja, only to arrive too late.

"…You let them become reviled and hated as I had been," the snake-charmer's disembodied voice echoed all throughout the clearing. "Truly, I applaud you for sacrificing all your heroes to appease the masses." A vacant fit of chuckles rang clear in the fused form's ears. "You and Danzou truly are a couple of peas in a pod, aren't you?"

In a dazzling flash of light, Enma and Hiruzen had separated from each other, both with equally morose looks chiseled on their visages. Once broken of the jutsu, Hiruzen clutched his shoulder in pain, the agony erupting with full force. "Argh! My arm!"

**"Hiruzen!"** his long-time companion shouted, worry crossing over his features as his summoner knelt down. **"All right, you vile snake, what did you do to him?"**

"Oh, by the way, you don't 'win' this time, Sensei, so don't celebrate, just yet," his whimsical student haughtily claimed. "You see, my Kusanagi…its lethal poison circulates through your bloodstream as I make my tactical retreat. Enjoy your next few weeks!" The chilling laughs that roared through the winds came and went as Orochimaru of the Legendary Three Ninja was no longer sensed by all in the glade.

Hiruzen could do nothing but growl.

**"You let him escape again, old friend,"** Enma gravely intoned.

"…His comeuppance is nigh, Enma," the seasoned warrior confidently claimed from his crouched position. "I assure you of that." He felt his ANBU squadron surround him, offering quick apologies and asking him if he was unharmed. "Not all pedestals are meant to withstand the tests of time."

_'…Not even his.'_

XXXXXXXXXX

Temari felt far under pressure to elude their trackers as she held Gaara in a supportive manner. It did not help when her little brother began his transformation into the beast that dwelled within him.

_'Damn it,'_ she mentally cursed. _'I'm out of time…'_

She decided to stop running to engage the enemy in order to bide some more time for their hidden weapon to unleash itself. _'I have to stop him…'_ Unfolding her war fan, the Desert Flower leapt up and let loose a close-quarters windstorm to thwart the Uchiha's progress.

It would have made direct contact had it not been for what looked like a crystalline mirror-like rectangle blocking the majority of the burst.

"What in the world…?"

As the Konoha shinobi urged his familiar to soar over the reflective block, the sandy blonde felt a sudden throb in her right kneecap when a stray senbon found itself superficially embedded into it. A numbing sensation overcame her leg as she crumpled into a sloppy kneel.

She saw the bizarre-looking prism shine a bit from the available sunlight as it flipped around and, emerging from the foggy crystal on the other side, was, in Temari's opinion, the one who crafted it. Her chocolate-brown eyes, normally warm, adopted a frosty edge as she glared at the now-crippled Sand kunoichi.

"I have orders to detain you, by any means," the brunette female ninja softly uttered as her battle kimono ruffled while she slowly hopped from branch to branch. "I don't want to hurt you too badly for invading my new home, but if you resist, then I will be forced to take action."

"…Who are you?" the incapacitated kunoichi inquired, running a few scenarios and contingency plans through her head.

"You may call me Haku…" the peculiarly dressed girl before her introduced, "and it is my sworn duty to protect the home of my new master."

XXXXXXXXXX

Blue eyes with slit pupils glanced around as he picked up that familiar peach-smelling fragrance dead ahead…along with another foreign scent. _'Haku-chan?'_ Naruto wondered as the scents got stronger. _'Why's she's all the way out here?'_

"Hey, Kiba, you smell that?" he asked as he cut his eyes to the left, staying mindful of low-hanging tree branches in his peripheral vision.

His fellow tracker whiffed the air. "Yeah, I do. Two girls…dead ahead!"

"Looks like it's time to help the friendly."

"You mean," Sakura intervened, "there's another kunoichi that's possibly on our side?"

"Not possibly," the blond answered with a confident smile, "because I know it without any doubt in my mind. We know her, Sakura. It's Haku-chan!"

"Well, let's help her out, then!" the cerise-locked kunoichi chirped.

"I'll shoot her a clone or two to ask if she's got it covered." With that in mind, the scourge of Konoha summoned a pair of doppelgangers, not even having the need to order them around as they sprung into action. They increased their speed a slight amount to scout in front. "If she needs help, then my copies can provide support."

"…Not gonna lie. That's a pretty handy jutsu," Kiba muttered with a twinge of envy.

The one-man army known as Uzumaki Naruto shrugged his shoulders. "Meh…It has its ups and downs. Either way, we gotta try to save enough of our strength for what's about to go down soon…"

XXXXXXXXXX

The two Naruto duplicates sped up, critically taking in their surroundings among the sea of trees.

"See anything?" the rightmost clone inquired.

"Yeah," the other replied. "I see some of Haku-chan's ice mirrors, so she must be fighting an enemy."

As the two approached, they were stopped by one of the ice-conjuring kunoichi's own copy, but made of water. The crystalline prison obscured who was caught within his roommate's special art.

"I'm fine, Naruto-kun," the Mizu Bunshin hastily commented as it phased out of the icy prison of mirrors. "Sasuke-kun is northeast from here! Hurry!"

"Well, let's go, then!"

"All right!" The two leapt into action and charged forward, nimbly tapping against tree limbs with adrenaline-fueled celerity.

"Oh, dear…" Cold dread coated its insides. He felt the strange sensation that permeated the air like suffocating a person with a thick blanket.

"What? What's wrong?"

The copy to the left simply pointed. "Look."

The blond on the right sharpened his vision by focusing his eyes past the tree line to a narrow squint. Said blue eyes widened in shock.

Rising above the canopy was a mound of sand that began to take shape around a small speck that appeared to be a ninja on a type of mount.

"…Looks like someone knocked over that kid's sand castle," the observant duplicate deadpanned.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N:** **Now, before I finish out for this chapter's AN, I ask that you leave me a review. I'm pretty sure that, among the staggering number of alerts I have for this story; I have many readers creeping around in the background and behind the scenes. Where are you all? Drop me a line and show me you're not a bot! And yes, I'm pointing you out. Show me some love! Let me know what you think! =)**

**I also enabled anonymous reviews again, but be mindful of what is typed. Anything offensive or obscene will be deleted on the spot.**

Nevertheless, I'd like to give props to my go-to fellows for this update: **EliadS, Dalxein**

Only two people managed to find the required two references from last chapter:

**Daniel Lynx, Tempest of Reach**

What were they, you might ask? Well…in order of appearance:

**One: Man on Fire ("A life for a life…") – Excellent movie, by the way!**

**Two: Star Wars ("Order Sixty-Six" on the Uchiha)**

**Three: Star Wars ("Search your feelings, for you know it to be true.")**

**Four: Iconic Internet Troll Meme ("You mad, bro?")**

**Five: Halo 2 – variant of the inspired quote from the Heretic Leader, Sesa 'Refumee to the Arbiter ("The Hyuuga [Elites] are blind, Neji [Arbiter]. [But] I will make them see.")**

**Six: Halo 3: ODST – corrupt police officer teaming up with the Rookie as they venture deeper into the Data Hive to rendezvous with Veronica Dare ("Don't worry. We all got secrets.")**

Like I mentioned, some were pretty obscure; others, blatantly obvious.

There aren't any Easter eggs for this chapter, sadly. At any rate, let me know what you think of the fight scenes (or glances into them). Am I doing a decent enough job to introduce compelling battle choreography?

Just saw the most recent manga chapter…

The names being released for the tailed-beasts made me sigh in dismay.

Anyhow, I promise to you that I will refurbish the past chapters (Four to Fifteen) when the time permits. And, in good faith, I decided to postpone the climactic battle until the next installment. I wanted to get the invasion in its entirety, but due to pressing time issues to get it under the once-a-month update; I felt the need to post what I had already written.

On that note, ladies and gentlemen, take it easy, enjoy your day (or night, depending on your time zone), **LEAVE A REVIEW** and I'll see you all in the New Year. Seasons greetings and happy holidays to you all!

_The looming shadow of war has broken to the light of victory, but, regrettably, some souls never returned from the howling darkness. Lives were greedily consumed in the war machine, forcing the sole survivors to march on in remembrance of their fallen comrades. In the meantime, extenuating circumstances force the wizened Fire Shadow to abdicate his position and find a worthy successor to the Hokage mantle, but it becomes a race against the clock as he withers away._

_Jikai (Next time…), on Birth of a Legend: The Fox Druid…_

_Small Victory: Race against Time_

**Romaji/Jutsu Guide**

**Shishienjin (Four Violet Flames Battle Encampment)**: B-rank supplementary mid-range barrier ninja technique; this special barrier technique requires at least four people; standing in a square formation, the performers are covered from all sides; the faces of the barrier are made from purple flames, and the barrier does not allow anyone to enter or exit so long as the ninja are unharmed. The body of anyone touching it will immediately be engulfed in flames. In addition, there is no way to destroy the formation from inside the barrier, since the four people also have a barrier on the inside protecting them. Breaking out is extremely difficult. (Narutopedia)

**Doton: Dosekiryuu (Earth Release: Earth and Stone Dragon)**: unknown rank offensive long-range ninjutsu; the user creates a dragon made from the ground to attack the opponent (Narutopedia)

**Katon: Karyuu Endan (Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet)**: B-rank offensive short- to mid-range ninjutsu; the user kneads chakra into flames, which are then manipulated into a genuine-looking dragon. Since the art of having the flames obey the user's will is outrageously difficult, its mastery is restricted to a limited number of skilful shinobi. The flames are divided to launch a left side, right side, and frontal assault in all three directions at once, turning the enemy into ash in a matter of seconds. (Narutopedia)

**Nintaijutsu**: ninja body techniques; simply, the use of integrating elemental ninjutsu into taijutsu

**Suiton: Suijadan no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Serpent Missile Technique)**: High C-rank mid- to long-range ninjutsu; allows the user to create a serpent out of water to launch at the opponent; lower form of **Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Dragon Missile Technique)** (created)

**Kenjutsu**: literally, "art of the sword," "fencing," or "sword techniques"; catch-all term for practitioners of the bladed arts

**Boujutsu**: literally, "staff techniques"

**Shinrei no Higi: Enjin Kyuushuu (Spiritualistic Secret Ceremony: Ape-Man Merger)**: unknown rank, classified secret ritual; little is known about this particular technique, but observations have concluded that it entails the user assimilating with a personal summoning familiar or assuming the characteristics of the animals the user has sworn to protect through mysterious methods; in this case, this secret ceremony has been speculated to be specific to the monkey-summoning Sarutobi clan (created)


End file.
